Chapter 9

9

“ N ever!” Sabre proclaimed dramatically.

“Never what?” Brax asked, looking over his shoulder. He was digging around in the chest freezer for Styx’s dinner.

“Never will I believe the absolute garbage Mikhail and Jinx are spouting,” Sabre explained. “I’m sure we can come up with something.”

Brax stepped back, holding up a huge, meaty bone. Styx whined, the drool hanging from his mouth stretched and stretched until it hit the floor. Brax shot the beast a disgusted look. “You better clean that up.”

“He doesn’t have opposable thumbs,” Sabre reminded Brax, patting Styx as she passed.

“Well, he better grow some if he’s going to keep drooling like that,” Brax complained. “It’s gross.” He tossed the bone to Styx, who caught it in his massive jaws before trotting happily to his bed with his prize.

Brax stared at the drool as if he could make it disappear with the power of thought. When that didn’t work, he grumbled and reached for the paper towels. Sabre’s head tilted to the left, her eyes glued to Brax’s exceptionally fine arse as he bent to wipe the floor. Her palms tingled with the urge to caress those firm cheeks.

When he wiggled from side to side, Sabre knew she’d been caught ogling. She merely grinned unapologetically when he looked at her. “How do you feel about wearing a naughty maid uniform?”

Brax straightened and eyed her from head to toe. His gaze heated, and a low rumble vibrated in his chest. “I feel confident I have the calves to pull it off.”

She agreed wholeheartedly. “Yeah, ya do.”

Brax tossed the soiled paper towel into the bin before pinning her to the wall with his body. Sabre was all for sexy times with her demon, but they hadn’t agreed to a plan yet. When he tugged on her ear with his teeth, sending shivers down her entire right side, she ducked under his arm and darted away. “Wait. We need to talk first.”

“Talk?” Brax pointed at the large bulge in his pants. “What about my dick?”

“It’s very nice,” Sabre complimented him. “It’s also not going anywhere. Talk first. Dick-play later.”

“Are you edging me? Is that what this is?” Brax questioned, an adorable look of confusion on his face.

Sabre shook her head, loving the man in front of her with every fibre of her being. “I’m not edging you … yet. I’m serious. We need to think of something to do about Jinx and Mikhail.”

Brax groaned and shook his head. “Nope.”

“What do you mean?” Sabre demanded. “They’re both being stubborn.”

“Which is their right,” Brax pointed out, collapsing onto the lounge.

“Their right?” Sabre sneered. “Are you a princess or a general? Who cares about their rights?! I’m talking about their happiness here.”

Brax chuckled. He stretched his legs out, crossing his feet. “You are the most fascinating woman I have ever met. Have I told you that?”

Sabre shrugged, staring at her mate. She wasn’t sure if fascinating was a good thing or not. “You tell me all sorts of things. All the time. In fact, you hardly shut up.”

Brax’s answering smirk was sexy as hell. “I know one way you can shut me up.”

Sabre huffed, her hands going to her hips. “You can eat me out later. Focus.”

“I am focused,” Brax assured her. “On our sex life. Not on the non-existent relationship of two members of our family. Do you really intend to interfere?”

Sabre looked at him in disbelief. Was he kidding? “Are you daft? Has all your blood drained to your cock? Of course, I intend to interfere. I’m going to interfere so much that they’ll name their firstborn after me.”

Brax rested his head on the back of the lounge and closed his eyes. His whimper was pitiful. “Sabre, no. Do you remember when we first met? How hard you fought your feelings?” He opened his eyes but kept them on the ceiling. “How would you have felt if Jinx, Mikhail, or Gage had decided to play matchmaker and push us together?”

“My initial feeling would be to lead with violence,” Sabre confessed, causing Brax to snort and gaze at her adoringly. She ignored him, continuing, “ But if being with you was the outcome … if loving you for the rest of my life was the result of their machinations, I’d be okay with it.”

“Way to win the argument,” Brax muttered, reaching out and snagging her by the waist. He settled her on his lap and launched an assault on her tonsils.

Sabre grinned against Brax’s marauding mouth, pleased with herself. When she caught her breath, she traced his nose with her finger. “Besides, Mikhail kind of did set us up. Turnabout is fair play.”

“Wait. Back up.” Brax pulled his head back. “What do you mean?”

“Apparently, he sensed some, ah, interest from my end,” Sabre revealed. “He thought we’d be good together. It’s one of the reasons why he told you to hire me when he was Hound. Fuck knows why he thought so at the time,” she added with a mutter.

Brax gripped her waist firmly. “We are good together,” he reminded her.

Sabre patted Brax’s shoulder. “Duh. We’re the best. But Mikhail had no reason to believe that. He’s just lucky it worked out, and I decided to mate you rather than murder you.”

“Oh, he’s the lucky one, is he?” Brax growled, squeezing her butt.

Sabre’s core literally tingled. Brax’s growl had the ability to do things to her. Dirty things. Before she surrendered the last of her will to horniness, she flattened her palms against his chest. “Wait, so you agree? We give Mikhail and Jinx a little helping hand so they can realise how far up their butts their heads are?”

Brax paused, the lust on his face morphing into indecision. “I don’t know, Sabre. They’ve both been through a lot. Not to mention, is now really the best time for this? There’s kind of a lot going on.”

Brax made some excellent points. Sabre rested her forehead against his. “I don’t want to force them into anything they’re not comfortable with. I just want them to see what I see—the beautiful potential that lies between them.”

Brax’s breath fanned across her lips when he spoke. “That is positively lovely.”

She shrugged. She could be sensitive when the occasion called for it. “Just call me Cupid.”

“I’ll call you something …” Brax mumbled, tackling her to the floor.

Sabre laughed, feeling carefree and loved—things she thought were impossible before meeting Brax. But now, they were a daily occurrence, and she wanted Jinx and Mikhail to have the same thing. She couldn’t think of two people who deserved it more.

Brax straddled her hips, keeping his weight from her as he peeled his shirt off, revealing inch after inch of toned, tanned skin. “Stop plotting,” he ordered. “You promised my dick some action.”

“Did I?” Sabre asked, blinking innocently. “I don’t recall.”

“Here,” Brax said with a grunt. He unzipped his pants, releasing his hard shaft. “Let me remind you.”

She grinned. She loved the way he wanted her, how he made her feel like the most desirable woman in the world. She opened her mouth in anticipation, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. Brax tangled his hands in her hair, guiding her firmly to the angry, red tip of his dick. She flattened her tongue, licking the crown and drawing the taste of his pre-cum into her mouth. His moans of pleasure echoed in the room, and she took him deeper into her mouth, using her tongue and throat to get him off.

Sabre kept her eyes on his, drinking in the intensity of his gaze as he fucked her mouth in slow, deep thrusts. He grunted and groaned, muttering filthy things that made her ears ring. Just before she was sure he was about to shoot his load, he pulled back. Without a word, he leaned down and captured her lips in a fierce, possessive kiss. His hands roamed feverishly over her body, his touch igniting sparks of pleasure wherever it landed. She moaned into his mouth, her hands gripping his shoulders as she lost herself in the sensation.

He began trailing hot kisses down her neck and collarbone as his fingers traced the outline of her breasts through her thin shirt, causing her to arch up into his touch. In one swift movement, he tore off her shirt and sports bra, revealing her small breasts to his hungry gaze. He took a moment to admire them before latching onto one nipple with his mouth, teasing and sucking until Sabre was writhing beneath him.

Her hips bucked against his arousal, rubbing herself against him in search of friction. Thankfully, he quickly slid down her body, leaving a trail of kisses along the way, until he reached the waistband of her pants. “Off,” he growled, pulling them down along with her underwear.

Sabre lifted her hips to help him, gratified when he shoved his own pants the rest of the way off as well. Brax’s yellow eyes glowed as they roamed over every inch of her exposed skin before he positioned himself between her legs. His fingers trailed lightly over her inner thighs before delving into her wetness. She gasped at the riotous pleasure coursing through her body. He knew exactly how to touch her to make her crazy.

With one hand still teasing and caressing between her legs, Brax used the other to position himself at her entrance. “Want me?” he asked huskily.

“Yessss,” Sabre moaned in response. “Always.”

With that, he pushed inside of her, filling every inch of space and causing both of them to cry out. Their bodies moved together in perfect unison, and she bit down on his shoulder, humming happily when blood hit her tongue. His legacy never activated during sex anymore, and it thrilled her.

Curses met her ears, and Sabre grinned, clenching her inner muscles around Brax’s gorgeous cock. His hips lost their rhythm, becoming more brute force rather than controlled motion, and he came with a roar seconds later. Sabre watched, entranced, as his head fell back, the muscles in his neck cording with strain. Her breath caught in her throat when her own orgasm barrelled through her unexpectedly. Brax ground his pelvis against hers, stimulating her clit and extending her pleasure to the very precipice of discomfort.

Afterwards, she lay tangled in her mate’s arms with a satisfied smile on her face. “I’m pretty sure we keep getting better at that,” she commented, following a bead of sweat on Brax’s chest with her tongue.

Brax grunted, reduced to non-verbal communication.

Sabre placed a kiss near his nipple, her nose twitching when his chest hair tickled it. She was about to suggest a shower when a thought hit her. “We need more recruits.”

Brax hummed, his hand smoothing over her thigh. “For what?”

“For Operation Cupid.”

Brax groaned, flinging an arm over his eyes. “Sabre, we are not dragging anybody else into your crazy scheme. And we are definitely not calling it Operation Cupid.”

“Sure we are,” she retorted, patting his abs. She reached for her discarded pants, fishing around for her phone in the pocket. Before Brax could snatch it from her, she pressed a single button, initiating a group call. Within moments, Gage, Eric, and Draven had answered. “Good. You’re all here,” she said briskly. “It’s time to divide and conquer.”

“Are you talking about X?” Draven asked quickly. “Do we have a new lead?”

“Not him, you dipshit,” Sabre snapped, glaring at the phone. Beside her, Brax’s body moved with his silent laughter.

Eric jumped in before Draven could respond, but his annoyed snarl could be heard loud and clear. “Then what are we conquering?”

Sabre smiled slyly. “Romance.”

“Say what?” Eric sounded confused.

Sabre looked to the heavens and prayed for patience. Maybe she should be asking Phaedra and Mercy for help. Or perhaps even Lucifer. She never needed to use as many words with them. They just got her, bless their violent beating hearts. “Mikhail and Jinx,” she explained.

All three men spoke simultaneously, and a resounding no echoed through the speaker.

“Don’t be a bunch of pansies!” Sabre screamed back.

Silence reigned for a few moments before Draven cleared his throat. “Brax, are you there?”

“I’m here,” Brax admitted.

“Control your woman,” Draven demanded sourly.

Sabre met Brax’s resigned gaze and said, “I read a study once that showed people are much happier when they’re not surrounded by a bunch of cunts.”

Brax’s eyes widened, his pupils expanding in shock. He sputtered incoherently for a second before finally sitting up and yelling, “Sabre!”

“What? It wasn’t my study,” she defended herself. “I just thought it was interesting.”

Brax shook his head slowly, his lips twitching. Sabre winked at him, earning a full-blown grin and a sweet peck on the lips.

“Don’t you think we have enough on our hands?” Gage’s deep voice sounded in the room. “What with a murderous triplet on the loose?” he added dryly. “No offence, Abraxis.”

“None taken,” Brax promised the akuji.

“Which is why we need more recruits. Seriously, how are you guys not following this?” It wasn’t astrophysics, Sabre thought in frustration. “Ever heard of multitasking?”

“What exactly do you want us to do?” Eric wanted to know.

“Get Mikhail and Jinx to acknowledge their true feelings about the whole mate thing,” Sabre clarified.

“Did you ever stop and think that perhaps they have already acknowledged their truths? And you’re just not listening,” Draven questioned.

Sabre considered it for a moment before deciding, “No. That’s crap. Your ideas are crap. Your right to contribute has been revoked.” Hearing Draven’s offended gasps and annoyed grumbles gave her immense joy. “Gage? Eric? You’re up.”

“Acknowledging their feelings isn’t the issue,” Eric said. “It sounds like they were brutally honest with each other. Getting them to act on their instincts and desires is the problem. They believe it isn’t possible.”

“So we prove to them that it is,” Sabre said simply. She rubbed her hands together. “Eric, because you’re so smart, you’re up first.”

“Me? Up first? What do you mean?” Eric’s voice was higher than usual.

“What’s one surefire way to get a man to act on his base instincts?” Sabre asked.

“Jealousy,” Brax supplied helpfully.

“No fucking way!” Eric bellowed.

“Come on, Eric. Nut up,” Sabre encouraged, doing her best to deliver a rousing speech.

“That’s exactly what I want to protect: my nuts,” Eric pointed out. “Do you know what will happen if a demon king thinks I want to get in his fated mate’s pants?”

“Yes. Romance,” Sabre stated happily. She had a good feeling about this.

“Wrong!” Eric yelled rather shrilly. “Death. My death. Death from de-nutting.”

Beside her, Brax burst into laughter. Gage’s amusement could be heard via the phone as well. Draven, the sad sack, couldn’t see the humour, of course, and offered Sabre suggestions to balance the chemicals in her brain. “Do you want Jinx to be happy or not?” she demanded of them when she could get another word in.

“You know I do,” Eric responded quietly. His following sigh was loud and resigned. “Fine. I’ll do it. But I better be left intact after this.”

“Don’t worry. If Mikhail kills you, I can always bring you back,” Sabre said cheerily, leaning into Brax’s side. She was beginning to feel cold, and he was always so warm.

“It’s not just Mikhail you have to worry about,” Gage pointed out mildly. “This is Jinx we’re talking about.”

“I changed my mind …” Eric began.

“No takebacks!” Sabre exclaimed, glaring at the phone. “You already agreed. Besides, even if Jinx is pissed at first, she’ll be so happy when she and Mikhail are together that she’ll be thanking you, not killing you.”

“I hope you’re right,” Eric muttered before hanging up.

I hope so, too, she thought after hanging up.