Free Seducing Destiny (Brothers of Fate Book 2) by Allyson Lindt Page B

she didn’t know she held, and let the pain muddy the edges of her vision.
    The scene around her passed in a blur. Eli was on the phone, barking orders for cleanup and containment. Marley knelt next to Blake and then was by Luci’s side. Someone else appeared in the middle of the room and vanished just as quickly, taking Morrigan with them.
    “Hey.” Marley nudged her leg. “Look at me.”
    Luci forced herself to focus on the other woman’s face. “Is he...?” Dead wasn’t the right word. Gods didn’t die. Except he’d said they could. That was part of the legends.
    “Mortal.” The syllables rolled off Marley’s tongue, but they didn’t make sense.
    Blake groaned, and Eli helped him sit.
    “I... What?” Luci stared at Marley, looking for some indication this was a joke.
    “Let me see your arm.” Eli rested his palm on her shoulder.
    A frantic dance of sparks raced through the limb, until she thought her head might burst in a tower of sparks. The pain amplified and then vanished. She gasped at the contrasting sensations.
    Blake rubbed his face and wobbled to his feet.
    “Better?” Eli asked.
    Luci nodded. She wanted to ask what he’d done, but she needed to know something else first. She looked at Marley. “Go back to what you said.”
    Blake joined them on the bed, despite how crowded it had grown, and flopped onto his back next to Luci. “She said mortal.”
    “Take it from someone who knows,” Marley said. “Never think you can guess what the legends actually mean, until they play out.”
    Luci wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry.
    “Hey.” Blake reached up and laced his fingers through hers. A smile played on his face, instead of the negativity Luci expected. His voice was calm, and soothing, despite the fact he sounded exhausted. “It’s all okay. I’m all right, and so are you.”
     
    ****
     
    Hot water sluiced over Luci’s head and down her back. She leaned forward in the shower and pressed her forehead to the cool tile. She couldn’t help but smile. She’d only been here at Blake’s for a week, and especially if she ignored the insanity that had been their first twenty-four hours together, it had been an incredible week. She was still adjusting to the memories of three other lifetimes, but she knew now they were all hers. Not overlapping time lines or conflicting ideas, but experiences she’d lived in another time and place.
    The shower door slid open, and the cool air chased steam around her before vanishing again. Blake rested his hands on her hips, pressed his chest into her bare back, and traced his lips up her neck. “Good morning, Elskede. ”
    The word filled her. He’d told her it meant beloved. Despite the jumble of past lives, it was hers and hers alone. She leaned against him. “I’m pretty sure you already showered.”
    His hard length pressed into her ass. He traced along the scar on her hip. Eli had been able to heal the slash through her birthmark, but not hide the wound. She didn’t mind. It felt right that the symbol was scarred over now. “But I’m feeling dirty again,” Blake said.
    “I know a solution for that.” She plucked the shower gel from the shelf in front of her and handed it over her shoulder. After the incident with Morrigan, they’d determined Blake had exhausted his power and completely neutralized the goddess’s, leaving them both mortal. They’d stuck Morrigan with local police, amid protests that she was a goddess and threats that she’d make everyone pay.
    Luci heard a squirt, and seconds later, something cold hit her stomach. She squealed at the sudden jolt.
    “Sorry.” Blake sounded anything but. His touch warmed quickly, as he soaped his palms up her torso. Her giggles faded into a moan when he brushed the underside of her breasts. His tight grip, combined with the slick surface, sent shudders of pleasure through her.
    She squirmed under his touch. “Do you really want to do this in here?”
    “Here. The bedroom.