STORY EXCERPT

Damon drifted in a hazy state between slumber and consciousness as voices murmured around him. The last thing he remembered was fighting against an ancient vampire with his family by his side. The creature had used its powers and blown all four of them off of it.

But then the vampire had locked eyes with Damon, malicious glee etched on its face, and whispered a single word: sleep.

Now, he was in a state of weightlessness, uncertain where he was or what was happening. His wolf within him howled for him to wake up, but he felt trapped in this dreamlike state.

“Did it work?” a voice asked.

“We must give it time,” another voice replied. “He’s just been infused with powerful blood. His body needs to circulate it and absorb it.”

“You’d think it would give him a surge of adrenaline,” a third voice chimed in. “He should’ve jumped to his feet, ready to take on anything.”

“But we don’t know how this will affect him,” the second voice admonished. “I gave a very small portion of my power to his twin, and even then he needed assistance in defeating Vicino.”

The vampire may have been defeated, but what about Damon’s family? Had they survived? He desperately wanted to know. He strained to open his eyes, but they refused to cooperate.

   Suddenly, he felt a pulsating energy coursing through his veins. It started off as a gentle thump, but it was growing stronger.

 His wolf was no longer howling. It was now growling and snapping its jaws, twisting around as if possessed.

Then, an overwhelming thirst clawed at his throat. A burning rush that caused his stomach to seize up and spasm. Damon screamed in agony, yet no sound escaped his lips.

At the same time, a strange sensation began to tingle in his back, spreading until it felt like a million ants were crawling over it.

What was happening to him? Why couldn’t he wake up, and who were these people around him?

“Son, come back to us,” his dad’s gentle voice pleaded. “Wake up, Damon.”

I’m trying, Dad!

“Fight,” Jaytee urged with a fierce growl. “Claw your fucking way out of there.”

His twin had survived. But what about Jax? Damon’s heart ached at the thought of losing his older brother. They may not always have gotten along over the centuries, but Damon would lay down his life for him.

“Wake up so Elvine can give you hell,” Jax said with a smile in his voice, but it also sounded as if he was holding back tears. “She’s been all weepy since we found you unconscious. It’s kind of scary not seeing her all fired up and giving us hell.”

Damon laughed through his tears. Jax was alive. His entire family had made it through the battle alive. They hadn’t been slaughtered by the horde of undead vampires.

But how? 

A sharp, electrifying pain ripped through Damon’s body, causing him to scream and arch his back in agony. But still, no sound came out.

“Holy shit!” shouted Jaytee in astonishment. “He has feathery wings!”

“You gave him your wings, Nazaryth,” the second voice stated.

“I just hope he doesn’t accidentally fall off a cliff trying to use them,” someone, presumably Nazaryth, replied. “Flying comes naturally to me, but it may not be as easy for him.”

“It’s second nature to me, as well,” Elvine stated.

Damon had found the dark fairy entertaining before, but now he found her annoying for some reason. He assumed she’d protected Jaytee’s mate, or his twin wouldn’t be at Damon’s side.

Jaytee would be consumed with despair over losing Raidh.

Damon needed to get out of this limbo so he could be with his family and figure out what in the hell was wrong with him.

Power whipped through him, helping him to break through the invisible surface and finally open his eyes. Damon immediately flipped to all fours and crouched, baring fangs instead of canines. Wings he’d never had until now shot out behind him.

Except for the tall, muscular, and shirtless fae, Damon recognized everyone around him, yet his wolf perceived them all as a threat, even his family.

Panahasi held his arm out to stop Jaytee when he tried to step forward. “His wolf is in control now. At the moment, your twin cannot be reasoned with.”

“Because he is a newborn and he thirsts.” Prince Christian studied Damon closely. “I can see a strong hunger in your eyes, young one.”

“I’ll feed him,” Jaytee offered without hesitation.

Damon scented the air then slowly turned his head toward the six-foot-seven warrior fae.

“He has chosen,” Prince Christian stated.

“My twin chose a stranger over family?” Jaytee sounded hurt and angry, but Damon couldn’t think about that right now. His thirst was overpowering everything else, and he just knew he needed the warrior’s blood.

“No insult to you, wolf,” Christian said. “But you cannot feed a newborn. They require more than you can give.” He gestured toward the fae. “He can withstand the feeding your twin requires.”

The fae’s large gossamer wings fluttered softly as he moved forward, and then he lowered to one knee. “Yâto, nékah.” Feed, most cherished. 

“What did he just say?” Jax asked.

Damon had no idea, either.

“We’ll meet you inside the house, Casimir,” Panahasi said then turned toward everyone else. “Allow Damon to feed for the first time in privacy.”

Cautiously, Damon moved a little closer, still sniffing as he focused on Casimir’s cerulean-blue eyes.

“Do not fear me, nékah. Come closer.” Casimir held out his hand. “Allow me to nourish you.”

Damon attacked, lunging toward the warrior and taking him to the ground. Casimir gripped him tightly and flipped them over, forcing Damon onto his back. “You will feed from only me, but you will not force me to submit to you!”

Too hungry to think rationally, Damon growled and bucked, his thirst clawing at his throat. He wanted Casimir’s jugular vein. He could see it pulsing in his neck, could smell the sweet, magical blood coursing through his veins.

ADULT EXCERPT

“Are you about to kiss me?” Damon grinned, his pulse skyrocketing as he lay on his back, his mate draped half over him. He became lost in Casimir’s touch, his closeness, and the possibility that he was going to finally know how his mate’s lips tasted. He wanted that kiss more than anything.

“I was trying to be smooth about it.” Casimir gave him a playful growl. “Now I guess—”

To hell with trying to be smooth. Damon grabbed Casimir’s shoulders and yanked him down, their lips touching for the very first time.

“This will do, my love,” the warrior groaned.

Casimir’s tongue slid over Damon’s bottom lip so slowly Damon felt dizzy. He wanted to keep his eyes open, but they fluttered closed. The first thing he registered about the kiss, beyond warm and wet and soft, was the taste. Masculine and spicy and purely Casimir. A warrior’s taste.

Casimir pulled him closer, plunging his tongue deep into Damon’s mouth. He sucked it with fervor as Damon writhed in his mate’s arms. So good.

Damon moaned and parted his lips even wider while his tongue chased the taste in Casimir’s mouth. Casimir chuckled into the kiss even as his hands slid from Damon’s face into his hair, feathering it between his fingers.

Another hunger started beating at Damon’s chest. A deeper darker need. He’d never had the chance to feed once he’d flown away and was pulled through that portal.

But it wasn’t just that. The fae’s intoxicating aroma drove Damon’s hunger deeper, like an accelerant to the thirst already clutching his throat.

“Casimir.” Damon panted against his mate’s lips.

“I feel your need, nétya.” His fingers tightened in Damon’s hair.

So why wasn’t he escaping? Why was he so calm? Unless Casimir thought Damon’s “need” was sexual instead of his dark thirst. He was struggling to get enough air into his lungs as the succulent fragrance wrapped around his head.

Casimir slid his hand around Damon’s neck, cupping his head gently. Yáto, nékah.” He exposed his neck.

Damon’s fangs elongated as he hissed, as he watched the pulse in his mate’s neck beat in a steady rhythm. He salivated at the sound of Casimir’s blood rushing through his veins.

“Don’t do this,” Damon begged as the darkness in him tried to take over. “I won’t be able to stop. I’ll kill you.”

Casimir smirked. “You could try.”

Losing the fight, Damon sank his fangs deep, groaning as the sweet blood coated his mouth and throat. He snarled, tugging at the hair gripped in his fists to prevent his mate from escaping. The blood was too delicious to let the fae go.

Damon growled when he felt Casimir jerking around. He was so far-gone he barely registered something wet bathing his entrance. The blood was too good to concentrate on anything else.

“I will fuck the urge right out of you,” Casimir snarled right before he drove his cock into Damon’s ass. “Release my neck, wolf.”

The sharp command only made Damon drink deeper, drawing as much blood as he could from Casimir’s vein.

Casimir delivered a powerful thrust, his cock driving deep into Damon’s ass. A delicious burn scorched his hole, causing Damon to whimper with another kind of need. It felt as if he was being stretched to the limit, yet a thrill surged through him.

“I will give you all the pleasure you yearn for, nétya.” Casimir delivered another intense thrust, causing Damon’s eyes to roll back. “But you have to release me. If you don’t, I will force your incisors out of me. Which experience do you desire most, pain or pleasure, my beautiful wolf?”

Casimir pistoned into him. Their bodies clashed, then his mate stilled, his cock trapped inside Damon’s ass, throbbing and teasing.

“Last chance,” Casimir warned. “Release me or I’ll pull my cock from your amazing ass.” He eased back until only the head remained.

A snarl ripped from Damon’s throat. He wanted both, but Casimir was making him choose. Damon already knew which one he wanted. He battled back his thirst, the part of him that wanted to drain the fae.

Finally, he extracted his teeth and licked the pinpricks closed. “Now fuck me,” he snarled, untangling his fists from his mate’s hair.

Casimir lifted his head, the side of his mouth curled into a confident smile. “Be careful what you wish for.” His inflection was rich and smoky, his eyes heavy-lidded. “Your ring of muscle is squeezing my dick so hard. I am about to wreck your ass.” He leaned back inhumanly fast, threw Damon’s legs over his arms and spread them wide. Then he tilted Damon’s ass upward and fucked him hard and deep.

Damon arched his back, digging his fingers into the rocky cliff beneath him. Casimir looked so gorgeous above him, his muscles flexing and straining, a savage and focused look in his eyes.

And that cock… Jesus. It was rock-hard as it slammed into Damon’s ass. So long and thick, hitting his kill zone every time, making him want to cry out with every thrust. Casimir leaned in and kissed Damon, never breaking his rhythm.

Everything felt so intense, especially since Damon rarely bottomed, but he relished the idea with his mate.