Unexpected Sting Read online

  “I don’t think you would respond positively to that suggestion, so I asked Kelnen, and he agreed. Because we are both mages and monsters, we fall under his purview.”

  She blinked. “I thought he had to get family agreement.”

  “No. Either Kelnen or Olmin has the power to arrange your union, considering who and what you are.”

  “So Abrax had no vote?”

  “No, he was not consulted. As an absent and unknown parent, he never acknowledged you and has no say over your binding.”

  She huffed. “Fine. When?”

  “You are giving in?”

  “I don’t know if it is the curse to follow you around, but having you tied to me feels like it will make things easier.”

  He grinned. “I will take it.”

  The contract appeared, and a ribbon slithered off it.

  “Oh, a handfasting, too.”

  He nodded. “Bound in soul, body, and magic.”

  She nodded and stood up. “Where do we want to do this?”

  “Kneel on the bed.”

  She lifted the edge of her dress and noticed that there were three more buttons open than there had been before she lay down. “Admiring the lace?”

  “It is excellent quality.”

  “One of Cale’s designs. How Sallen puts up with him, no one knows. He’s had his hand inside the panties of half the female magic users in the city.”

  Arthur’s eyes widened, and he stifled a laugh. “I will keep that in mind.”

  She crawled on her knees to the centre of the bed with him.

  “Now, read the contract.”

  She read the contract that entailed splitting all of her magical and physical assets down the centre. His portion was the same, but he also was charged to care for any issue of her body. Female mages frequently couldn’t make it through the delivery process. They had a fifteen percent complication rate.

  She nodded and signed the contract. He did the same. A drop of blood from each of them, and she muttered, “If we are going to do this for human legal stuff, my lawyer is going to have you sign a prenup.”

  “You do like keeping things restricted.”

  She shook her head. “No, it is for the shelters that I own, as well as the other businesses that cater to women. They might not appreciate you at the helm. The corporation has boards and officers. It will be fine.”

  He nodded. “I will sign whatever you need. Now, the ribbon.”

  She held his right hand with her left and wrapped the ribbon around them. She looked up at him, and he leaned in and kissed her. The ribbon warmed, glowed, and disappeared.

  Warmth climbed up her arm, and she shivered as his power flowed into her and hers flowed into him. Their kiss deepened, and it took over as they slowly gave in to the urge to finally seal the union.

  They toppled to the bed, struggled out of their clothing, and made magic.

  Stinger had her computer open, and she looked at her friend and legal representative, Keelie. “So, after mulling it over, I just want a new will, not a prenup. He’s not going anywhere, but I want to make sure that the small council keeps the network going. Can you draw that up? If I end up having kids, I will amend it again.”

  “You betcha, Stinger. I do bill by the hour, so I am all in favour of the updates. Do them every week if you like. I need a new purse.” She perked up. “Is your Arthur the one with the purse shop?”

  “No, mine is Arthur Orion.”

  “Oh. Like the hunter and the scorpion.”

  “Yeah. That one.”

  “Oh. Like you and him!”

  “Yup. You know, I might need to find a lawyer who is faster on the uptake.” She grumbled, and a cup of coffee appeared in her hand.

  She felt a kiss on her neck and looked in the display on her computer before she turned her head. Nothing there. Tricky bugger.

  Keelie cackled. “Yeah, like you could find one psycho enough to help your business plan. Well, get going. If you are handfasted, you need to consummate.”

  “We did that. A couple of times. It is firmly locked in.” She blushed.

  “Excellent. Congratulations, soon to be Mrs. Orion.”

  “Oh. Yikes. I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “Think of it. Make a list of all the documentation you have to switch over. It will be handy to know. Oh, and make sure that your passport is up to date.”

  “It is.”

  “Well, that’s enough for today. Talk to you soon, Stinger.”

  “Bye, Keelie.”

  She disconnected the call and closed her laptop. One of the nearby shadows moved. “Listening in, Arthur?”

  The ogre stepped toward her. “Yes. I like that you will take our name.”

  “No one is going to call me Arthur.”

  He growled and carefully took her laptop from her, setting it on the couch. “You are ours now.”

  She nodded warily. “I am.”

  He chuckled and lifted her in his arms. “I wish to explore this connection more thoroughly.”

  “Why?”

  He gave her a droll look. “You will get used to me. I am drawn to you and enjoy the feel and taste of you, so I require more.”

  “What does your other half think?”

  He grinned. “He is all for it. Your reactions to my touch are intoxicating for him. To sum it up, if he isn’t touching you, he likes to watch.”

  “Ah. Pervy.”

  He laughed. “You are only beginning to understand. It’s fine. We have our lives together.”

  He gently set her on the bed and knelt between her thighs. Her underwear had gone missing after the consummation, so when he carefully parted her folds with his thumbs, there was nothing to impede him. She watched as he leaned in and his long, thick tongue approached her. She felt the moment of contact and arched as he tasted her. She writhed slowly as he played her body with deliberate moves learned from their other encounters. He had one thumb on her clit, rubbing gently, the other hand on her breasts, squeezing, rubbing, and switching in between. Her senses swirled rapidly, and her body caught fire as his tongue undulated and rubbed inside her. Her breathing got rapid, and she let out a soft scream as her back arched and twisted due to his attentions.

  He kept his tongue working until she slumped on the bedding.

  Arthur slowly withdrew and lifted her in his arms. He slid her down his body, and she saw an image of them together, dressed in kimono and standing near a small pool.

  “What is that?”

  He licked and sucked at her neck. “What is what?”

  “I saw an image in my head, and while I don’t know where we were, I know that that was us.”

  “We have been invited to visit my parents for a few days.”

  He worked his way inside her, and she gasped.

  “What?”

  “They are inviting us for a visit. My mother’s clan is eager to meet you.” He groaned as he slid into her.

  “When?”

  “As you are working tomorrow, it is after you finish your job.”

  She arched back against him and shuddered as he continued moving inside her. She linked her fingers behind his neck and licked and kissed his lips. He held her and moved inside her. He broke the kiss. “What is your opinion on biting today?”

  She chuckled. “Fine, just don’t break bones.”

  He growled, bit her shoulder, and thrust upward with his cock writhing inside her. She gasped, and he sucked on her shoulder. She screeched in his ear as her grip on reality shattered apart and her body pulsed around him, gripping him tight. She felt the flex and heard the snarl as he came.

  He licked softly at her shoulder and then her neck as he slowly shrank back to mage-Arthur.

  Arthur held her and kissed the punctures on her shoulder. His voice was amused. “He is rolling around in there happy that he has gotten to taste you.”

  “Well, the marks will heal in a few hours. The bonus to being what I am.”

  “The skin will heal, but his drain o
n your personal energies will remain. You are now tied to both aspects of me.”

  She chuckled. “It’s fair. I tagged you as well.”

  He was genuinely stunned when he looked her in the eyes. “What?”

  “I tagged you when you held my hand over breakfast. The scorpion’s sting has been administered, and now, it has stopped telling me to kill you.” She ran her fingers through his hair. “I feel a lot better about this whole thing now.”

  He sighed. “I thought I was so clever.”

  “Yes, but I had to catch you before we could be released, so I did. You have a tiny pinprick on your wrist that will be numb for the rest of your life. That is where I can pull power if I need to or put venom in.”

  He grinned. “I supposed I should have asked what your monster needed.”

  She wrinkled her nose. “I think you knew.”

  He nodded. “I probably did. Did you have any more work to do?”

  She shook her head. “No. Nothing else to do. My slate is clear for the day.”

  He gripped her hips and started to slide her on him. “What to do with the rest of the day?”

  “We could get some rest. It is back to the day job for your tomorrow.”

  He nodded. “But I am not tired.”

  “Hm... how to get an adult male tired? I am at a loss. Any suggestions?” Stinger clenched around him.

  “Oh. Good start.” He closed his eyes as she undulated against him. “Very good start.”

  She giggled, and they continued their efforts to earn a nap until the early hours of the evening. It was quite the exertion, and in the end, they slept until the compulsion woke them.

  Chapter Eleven

  Stinger slammed open the boardroom, and the gathered folks jumped. Arthur got to his feet and shuddered as the compulsion went through him. “I need to borrow Mr. Orion. Morning, Mr. Twilight.”

  A bemused Stovos sat in his human glamour and asked, “How long until I can have him back?”

  Arthur was stalking toward her with intent. “An hour.”

  Stovos chuckled. “An hour it is. See you then.”

  Arthur caught her wrist and hauled her through the halls and into the office with his name on the door. He locked the door and removed his jacket. “Strip.”

  She chuckled and shrugged, unbuttoning her blouse and unzipping her skirt. “I don’t think you want me to strip all the way.”

  He glanced at her and froze.

  She was rather proud of her compromise between lingerie and a tease. With the blouse and skirt, she could appear in any boardroom, but the under-bust corset, stockings, and suspenders went really well with the heels.

  “Where did you get that?”

  “I have a few stashes of fun clothes around a few cities. I just had to summon one.” Her heels clicked on the floor as she approached him. “One of us is wearing too many clothes, but I could take this off if you like.” She ran her fingers from her neck to her cleavage and over to one nipple. The sound of fabric screaming filled the air; he caught her up, and her breasts were soon golden-pink and swollen. He was a fan of the corset. Noted.

  What followed was forty minutes of changing shapes, her kneeling on his desk and arching into him as the compulsion pressed her into action.

  * * * *

  Arthur returned to the boardroom, and Stovos looked at him with a slight grin. The meeting resumed the acquisitions segment, and Arthur offered his opinion and information from the new research mission he had been on. When the meeting concluded two hours later, Stovos waited until they were alone and got up. “So, is she hard on your clothing, or are you?”

  Arthur grimaced. “I had no idea it was possible to feel that focused that fast. It was like my brain caught fire.”

  “Since I know where she shops, I can say Cale has a lot to answer for.” Stovos chuckled. “I should send him a fruit basket.”

  “After today, I won’t be in until Monday. We need to straighten a few things out.”

  “You taking her to meet your parents?”

  “As soon as she finishes security at the party tonight.” He got his proposals in order.

  “She’s going to be at the publisher’s party?”

  “Yup.” He smiled at his boss. “We are going to transport from there to my mom’s family, and she can meet the rest.”

  “How does she get along with your ogre?”

  Stovos watched the man shudder.

  “She gets along just fine. All aspects of us have been bound except for the biological. The contract is very pushy in its insistence.”

  “How long does it give you between compulsions?”

  “Six to eight hours.”

  “How long will this last?”

  “Up to three months.” Arthur smiled. “If she gets pregnant before that, it stops.”

  “So, are you hoping for a speedy end or a drawn-out attempt?” Stovos smiled.

  “I am hoping for a speedy end so that we get a timeline and I can find a house for us.” He slid everything into his portfolio. “The hunt has begun, and there are already some prospects, but I have to keep her on the other side of the city from her mother.”

  “I thought she and Leetha got along.”

  “They do. Very well. As adults. I get the feeling that that relationship started sooner than it should have. Stiila didn’t have much of a chance to be a child.”

  Stovos blinked. “I did not know that.”

  “I don’t think anyone really knew that. They do love each other. It is more the love between sisters. So, I am going to try and keep them at a polite distance and help Stiila start a new life with me.”

  “So, she’s the one?”

  “She’s my scorpion. I am going to keep her where I can keep an eye on her.”

  Stovos grinned. “Having just taken on a monster myself, I can only wish you the best of luck.”

  The knock at the boardroom preceded Orvis coming in. His heart thudded a little at her entrance. “Ms. Orvis, what do you want?”

  She smiled. “Mr. Twilight, you have a meeting online in ten minutes. It might take you that long to chisel the smirk off your face. Good afternoon, Mr. Orion. Is Stinger well? She went through here so fast I thought there was a bounty on someone.”

  Stovos walked over to her and kissed her quickly as Orion slipped out behind him. They would be able to discuss their arrangement when they got back from meeting his parents. Stovos was overdue a trip to Japan, but his would be business. He had ties to a restoration company for old buildings that brought the ancient structures up to code using local yokai craftsmen. It was what one kind of faerie did for another.

  * * * *

  Stiila wondered when the next compulsion would hit. She was busy soothing angry words at the bar and helping servers escape the clutches of aggressive patrons. She had gone through the first three hours of the party waiting for the push toward Arthur, but it wasn’t coming.

  She kept the line for the photographer moving along, watching Nessa and her guys pose for the drooling photographer. He was getting tons of images to paint over and use on covers. Each of the groups signed a waiver if their photos turned out.

  Stovos went through with an elegantly attired Orvis. She looked amazing, and Stovos looked so happy to have her on his arm.

  There was a lull, and the images were being displayed throughout the venue. The photographer asked, “Don’t you have a guy lurking in the wings?”

  “No. I am not here with him. He is attending for business, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to be with him.”

  “Well, then, let me take a few of you.”

  She paused.

  “Come on. I don’t have anything in the solo range yet, well, nothing with a woman.”

  “A dude came through?”

  “Yeah, a little lady pushed him in and tried to pose with him, but he wouldn’t hear of it, so I have him, and she stomped off to grab someone else.”

  “Can I see his picture?”

  “Sure.”

>   She saw the image of Arthur glaring at the camera. “Yeah, that’s him.”

  The photographer blinked. “What?”

  “My guy. Okay, two pictures. How do you want them?”

  She took the two images, and they looked so sad.

  She nodded to the photographer as his lineup started again and was walking around the edge of the party when she ran into a familiar brick wall. “Arthur, I am working.”

  He sighed. “I know. Have you gotten the push from the contract?”

  “No. I would have hauled you into a dark corner for that.”

  He nodded and slowly smiled. “I have not felt one either.”

  She squeaked as he picked her up and hugged her.

  A young woman wobbled up to them. “Hey, let him go. I called dibs.”

  Stiila looked at her. “You called dibs? On my man?”

  “Uh, yeah. He doesn’t have a ring. You don’t have a ring. He’s available.”

  She looked to Arthur. “Did you say you were available?”

  “Of course not.”

  She looked at the woman. “Did you ask if he was free?”

  “No. It doesn’t matter.”

  Stinger patted Arthur’s chest. “Love, set me down.”

  His hands tightened for a moment, and then, he set her carefully back on her feet. She looked at the woman and smiled. “It would be best if you walked away now.”

  “I am not afraid of you.”

  Stinger grabbed the front of her beaded gown and lifted her skyward. “How about now?”

  The woman squeaked, and two gel slices crept out of her bodice. Stinger set her back on her feet and helped her right herself. “He’s mine. I am working, and he just found out that he’s the father of my child. We really wanted that moment, and you came into the middle of it trying to claim him.”

  The woman blinked. “You two are really...”

  They answered, “Yes.”

  The woman scuttled away, muttering, “Sorry.”

  Stinger sighed and turned back to Arthur. “Now, where were we?”

  He smiled. “I would like a picture with you.”

  She sighed, and they walked back up to the photographer. He looked at them. “You weren’t kidding.”