Untouchable Darkness (The Dark Ones Saga, #2)(51)

“You wouldn’t.” Cassius pulled me into his arms. “Because Darkness… is you.”





I was still reeling from my weird dream, or was it an introduction? The singed smell of burning sheets filled the entire upstairs. Ethan was irritated. Then again, ever since Genesis had become pregnant he’d turned into an over worried tyrant.

He’d already taken it upon himself to baby gate the stairway.

Mason was on board with that idea with so much enthusiasm he offered to install six of them.

Things were going downhill fast, and as much as I wanted to join in on the excitement…

There was… the whole darkness thing.

On top of trying to find whoever was making more immortal Demon.

Oh, and if life wasn’t stressful enough.

In less than thirty days, I apparently was going to kill the man I loved.

Life sucked.

A plate slid in front of me, the pancake was fluffy, huge, and had been smothered in enough syrup and butter to kill a human.

Mason sat across from me, his plate filled with a spiky pinecone and a handful of raspberries. “You looked like you needed it.”

I picked up my fork. “You remembered my favorite meal.”

“How could I forget?” He grinned. “Every year on your birthday, once you joined the council, you wanted pancakes instead of actual cake. Apparently nobody taught you the difference as a child, so let’s blame Alex.”

“I heard my name.” Alex limped into the room.

“What the hell happened to you?” Mason burst out laughing as Alex found a chair and winced.

“Baby gates.” Alex cursed. “A hell of a lot of baby gates. Who knew that would be my downfall?”

“I did,” I said between bites. “You’re a Siren, it’s like your kryptonite. The fact that you could have sex and produce children… it’s enough to make you abstinent.”

Face blank, Alex outwardly trembled.

“Shhh…” Mason handed Alex a berry. “You’re scaring him.”

“It’s like a mean bedtime story.” Alex glared at me. “Also, a little bird told me you nearly burned down the house last night. Care to share any intimate details?”

“She met Darkness.” This from Mason as he used his incisors to take a huge bite out of the pinecone.

“Ah, crazy right? Like meeting the worst part of yourself, while at the same time being seduced…” He pressed his lips together in a seductive pout. “I bet Darkness is hot.”

“He is,” I corrected.

Alex looked nonplussed, his expression didn’t change. “You know I don’t discriminate between the sexes, if he’s good looking, good for him, good for all of us.”

The sound of Mason chomping on the pinecone scraped over my nerves like nails on a chalkboard. I gave him a pointed look. Slumping, he dropped it back onto his plate and popped a berry into his mouth, his hand transforming into a claw so that he didn’t need to use a fork to poke each berry.

“Circus freak,” Alex muttered reaching for Mason’s coffee.

“Why—” Ethan stormed into the room. “—didn’t you warn her?”

Cassius followed, close on his heels. “What the hell did you expect me to say? Oh by the way, in your dreams, you’re going to get a visit from Darkness, have fun, be careful not to get to set the house on fire. Oh, and if you’re hot and bothered, it’s not me?”

“For the record,” I interjected. “I wasn’t hot and bothered, just warm.”

They ignored me.

“If she can’t control herself, she can’t stay!” Ethan slammed his fist down onto the granite cracking it down the middle. “Genesis is pregnant! She needs protection from things like that.” Pieces of granite flew into the air as Ethan pointed in my direction. I slumped low in my seat.

Mason let out a low curse. “I hate ordering new kitchen appliances. Home Depot employees are always so judgmental.”

Alex winced as the crack in the granite extended farther. Then the counter slammed into the floor. “Just tell them you got carried away with your last stripper. I’d go with it. Then once we flash them nothing but cash lean in and whisper ‘mafia’.”

Mason poked another berry with his claw. “Maybe I’ll just take you with me and tell them you’re my lover. Last time we did that we got fifty percent off.”

Alex sighed heavily. “Because she was totally into me, not you.” He scrunched up his nose. “You smelled too funny for her tastes, which is why you hung out by appliances while I took her out back.”

Ethan turned. “You did what? To a human?”

“Taught her how to saw.” Mason interjected. “At the Depot of Homes.”

I barely managed to keep my smile in as Cassius shared a confused look with Ethan.

“Lots of sharp edges.” Alex nodded emphatically. “Very dangerous… but don’t worry, none of your precious blood was spilled.”

A low growl erupted from Mason. “One day you’re going to get caught for tasting forbidden fruit.” Another raspberry flew through the air and into his mouth. “And I’m going to laugh. What’s going to happen when your tricks stop working on human women?”