Chapter Eight

Kenna checked the pots she had cooking on the stove. After their last bout of lovemaking, Tor and she had come downstairs to see what was in the fridge and pantry. As promised, Kenna was going to cook dinner for Tor.

She soon discovered that a trip to the grocery store wouldn’t be needed since Tor had picked up a lot of the ingredients she’d used earlier that day. She’d decided to make spaghetti. The sauce came out of a jar, but Kenna added sausage and mushrooms to it.

The pasta done cooking, she drained it and put some on two plates before topping it with sauce. Tor already sat at the island, drinking a beer. She also had one. Kenna had liked the idea that she could drink as much as she wanted and never get drunk. And really liked it that she could eat whatever she wanted and not have to worry about getting as big as a house. Immortality did have its advantages.

She placed a plate of spaghetti in front of Tor before she set hers next to him, then came around the island to sit on the stool beside his. “I know it isn’t as fancy or exotic like what you made yesterday, but it should taste good. At least I think it does.”

Tor picked up his fork, twirled some pasta on it, then put it in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed. “It’s good. I like pasta.”

While they ate they talked about moving her things out of her apartment to the house. Then the topic of her working at the Luxor came up.

“I’m going to have to quit, aren’t I?” she asked, not sure how she felt about that.

“Not right now if you don’t wish to, though I’d prefer you did. It’s your choice, but keep in mind you will have to eventually. You’re immortal now. You won’t ever age. At some point one of your coworkers will notice. It depends on whether or not you want to make the break now or wait until more years have gone by.”

Tor did have a point. And if she continued to work during the day, and Tor still had to go out hunting evildoers by night, they wouldn’t see each other all that much. And after her recent night shift at the hotel, Kenna knew she didn’t want to work those hours again.

“All right,” she said. “I’ll give them my two weeks notice. I’m not going to leave them in the lurch. The only person I can see who would be upset by it will be my good friend, Nick. He’s a blackjack dealer. And I can’t see how I’ll be able to cut him out of my life so abruptly without him thinking something is going on. I usually tell him everything.”

“Well, you can’t tell him about this. If you do Anubis wouldn’t like it at all. He wants mortals to have no knowledge of his warriors’ existence.”

“I know. I’ll just have to think of something when it comes to Nick. I want to keep him as a friend for as long as I can, which means I want to introduce you to him.”

Tor nodded. “I’d be more than happy to meet this friend of yours. I don’t expect you to cut all ties you have in your life. You do realize you’ll eventually have to make a break from your family as well.”

Kenna shrugged. “That’s not a biggie. My mom died when I was about ten. My dad remarried a few years after that and started a new family. We weren’t really close so he was more than happy when I was old enough to move out on my own. I talk to him about once a month and see him only on birthdays and Christmas. I doubt he’d care all that much if I just didn’t bother after a while.”

“I’m sorry to hear you’re not that close.”

“Don’t be. It doesn’t bother me, really. What about your parents? Do you remember them?”

“Of course. I may have been alive for thousands of years, but I remember what it was like growing up in Egypt. My parents were farmers. My brothers and I used to help with the land. I knew farming wasn’t going to be for me, so I took up the sword and joined the pharaoh’s army.”

“You never went back to see them after you became immortal. I saw that.”

“No, I didn’t. I thought it best if I stayed away, let them go on with the rest of their lives, let them believe I died on that battlefield.”

“Do you miss Egypt?”

“Sometimes, but I’m happy here. This is where Anubis wants me so this is where I’ll stay. I have no knowledge of the other warriors. He keeps us apart. We each live in different cities from one another. We all work alone.”

“That must suck.”

Tor chuckled. “I don’t mind.” He turned his head and looked out the window. “It’s starting to get dark. It’s almost time.”

Kenna knew what he meant. It was almost time for Tor to see if he could lure the demon here to fight him. She wasn’t thrilled with the whole idea, but Tor knew what he was doing. He was a skilled warrior and wasn’t exactly helpless. Tor also figured he’d shift into his other form at some point once the demon showed up. If evil forced the change on Tor then the demon would for sure have it happening. There was nothing more evil than that creature.

“I’m coming outside with you,” she said as she gathered up their plates and brought them to the counter.

“No, you’ll stay inside.”

Kenna turned to face Tor. “Who is to say I’ll be any safer in the house? Besides, Anubis used that spell on me that should protect me from any demon attack. So he shouldn’t be able to hurt me. I’m going to watch your back.”

“I’d feel better knowing you were out of the thick of things.”

“And I’d feel better if I was in it. I have to help protect you as much as you want to protect me. Our life forces are tied together. You go, I go. So I kind of have a vested interest in how well you do.”

“I don’t plan on losing to the demon.”

“Then my being outside with you shouldn’t be a problem.”

Tor stood and walked around the island to stand in front of Kenna. He cupped her face in his hands and brushed her lips with his. “Fine. You win. But you will do what I tell you. I don’t need to be distracted by worrying about you doing something you shouldn’t.”

“I promise.”

He nodded, then helped her wash up the dirty dishes and load the dishwasher. By the time they were finished it was full dark and Kenna was getting nervous. She just wanted this over and done with so Tor and she could move on with their new life together.

She followed Tor out to the backyard and stayed on the edge of the patio while he picked the ground he wanted to confront the demon on—the nice wide-open space of the expansive lawn away from the in-ground pool, which was as far as Tor allowed Kenna to stand.

Tor lifted his hand and a sword appeared in it. He then shouted, “Demon, show yourself.” Nothing happened. “What did you think sending an evildoer to my home would accomplish? If you thought it would throw me off my game, well, you’ll have to do better than that. Are you so weak that you must use mortals to do your dirty work?”

Still nothing. Kenna wondered if the demon had actually heard Tor and would show up. The minutes ticked by and she figured the creature was going to be a no-show. She stepped off the patio and walked toward Tor. She had a feeling they’d be going back inside the house.

“I don’t think the—” she started to say.

Kenna didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence when two men suddenly appeared out of thin air directly across from Tor. The one who held the man who struggled, trying to free himself, had eyes that glowed red. She came to a sudden standstill, knowing full well that had to be the demon. He shoved the man he held into Tor who grimaced.

Tor looked at her, and yelled, “Go inside the house! He brought an evildoer.”

She knew what that meant. Tor would be forced to deal with his prey first before he could think about taking out the demon. He wouldn’t be able to help himself. Even as Kenna spun around to run, Tor’s body took on the change to his other form.

She didn’t get very far before the demon appeared right in her path. Kenna came to a halt. Except for his glowing-red eyes, the creature would have passed as a normal, not-bad-looking man.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked as he sidled closer. Kenna took a step back for every one of his forward ones. “I’m going to have some fun with you while your mate is busy.”

So that had been the demon’s plan. Use the evildoer to distract Tor while the creature went for her. Kenna only had a few seconds to hope like hell Anubis’ spell worked. A sword appeared in the demon’s hand and he rushed her, moving faster than any mortal could.

The sword swung toward her. Instead of making contact with her, it bounced off some kind of invisible shield that surrounded her. No matter where the demon tried to strike, his blade couldn’t get through. He bellowed in outrage, attacking over and over again.

A streak of black slammed into the demon, pushing him away from Kenna. Tor, still in his half-human and half-jackal form, had come to her rescue. With the evildoer nowhere in sight, obviously taken care of, that left Tor able to focus solely on the demon.

Their swords met with a loud clang. Kenna kept her distance as Tor and the demon hacked at each other, looking for a way to land a strike. Tor handled his sword as if it was an extension of himself. And sadly, she had to admit the demon’s skill was pretty damn close to Tor’s.

The longer the sword fight dragged on the more Kenna felt her nerves trying to get the best of her. Both Tor and the demon had managed to get in a few good strikes, slicing into skin, but they healed very quickly, not slowing either one down.

Tor growled as he barely avoided a vicious cut that would have landed across his throat. Kenna’s heart threatened to beat out of her chest. Tor was immortal, but if he literally lost his head it was game over. For both of them.

With a bellow of his own, Tor launched a counterattack on the demon, hitting him faster and harder. The creature lost ground until one of Tor’s strikes landed true. His blade sliced across the demon’s stomach. It was deep enough to have him leaking like a sieve. The creature yelled in pain, his guard appearing to drop as he lowered his sword. Tor moved in and grabbed him by the throat, looking intently into the demon’s eyes. Kenna knew Tor would be pushing inside his mind.

The demon smiled. “That’s it, look into my eyes.” He then spoke under his breath in a language Kenna didn’t understand.

Tor stiffened before he let go of the demon to grab his head. He growled, the sound full of pain. He panted as he swung around in her direction, his sword raised.

“Run, Kenna,” Tor said in his deep, gruff voice. “He has control of me. I can’t stop myself.”

She stood her ground. “The spell should protect me since he’s the one controlling you.”

Closer Tor came. “No. It only protects you against an attack from a demon. I’m not one.”

Oh shit, Tor was right. An attack the demon launched through Tor would have the desired effect. She was a sitting duck. And she’d waited too long to get a head start on Tor. She’d never make it to the house now, not with how fast he was capable of moving.

Kenna dodged to the left and ran in the demon’s direction, trying to lead Tor back to him. The bastard laughed, enjoying the show while he waited for his wound to heal. She had to somehow get Tor to strike at the demon. The creature was still weakened. Plus, he figured he had all the control, making him vulnerable in his conceit.

Tor closed in on her. Kenna ran to stand behind the demon, hoping Tor would take a swing at her and hit the creature in front of her instead. That almost backfired when the demon ducked and Tor’s sword came within inches of her face.

She tried another tactic. She backed up, then took a run at the demon. He couldn’t touch her, but she hoped the spell would enable her to touch him. That worked. She slammed into the back of him. Since he hadn’t expected her to do something like that, she easily propelled him forward into Tor. All three of them crashed to the ground.

Kenna tenaciously held on to the demon’s back as Tor tried to reach for her. The creature ended up sandwiched between them. She felt pain as one of Tor’s claws sliced into her forearm, but she ignored it.

Meeting his gaze, she said, “Tor, will the weapon you need to send him to Anubis to appear.”

“I can’t,” he said through gritted teeth. “I can’t stop trying to get to you.”

The demon shifted under her, almost throwing her off. “I’m a demon,” she said.

“What?” Tor growled.

“Picture me as a demon. Make yourself believe I’m one, then try to will a new weapon into your hand.”

A black-bladed dagger suddenly appeared as Tor stared at her intently. Then she saw it heading her way as he went to strike at her with it. Knowing full well he wouldn’t use it on the demon himself, Kenna hit Tor’s arm when he struck again, knocking it toward the creature between them.

The dagger sunk into the cap of the demon’s arm. He stiffened, then let out a bellow of rage. Slowly his body became unsubstantial until he completely disappeared. Kenna landed on top of Tor with a grunt. He lay still under her.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“I have control of myself.”

He then stiffened as his body blurred, the sound of his bones shifting and realigning loud in the air. Kenna got off him as he took on his human form. Once it was complete she threw herself back on top of him and held on tight.

“That was too close,” she said.

Tor wrapped his arms around her. “I know, but he won’t be coming back. The black dagger sent him to the underworld to be judged by Anubis.”

Kenna picked up the dagger that lay beside them on the grass. “I guess my idea of getting you to think of me as a demon worked.”

Tor took the weapon from her, then willed it away. “That was fast thinking on your part. I wouldn’t have been able to do it. I was too busy fighting with myself. He would have made me kill you.”

“Taking two birds out with one stone.” She lifted her head and kissed Tor. “The bastard was overconfident.”

“I’m just glad my mate can think fast on her feet.” Tor set her aside and rose to stand before he held out his hand and helped Kenna up. He bent and picked up his discarded sword and willed it away. “We need to wash the stench of demon off us, then I’m going to take you to bed. It was too close for me and I need to be inside you, badly.”

She went on tiptoe and threaded her fingers through the sides of Tor’s hair as she kissed him with all the love she had for him. They were both breathing hard when she pulled away.

“A shower sounds good. And since I’m such a quick thinker, I know what I want to do to you when we’re in there.” She whispered in his ear what exactly she had in mind.

Kenna let out a squeal as Tor picked her up and put on a preternatural burst of speed, taking them into the house and up the stairs to his bedroom. He stripped them both out of their clothes and had her in the shower in the en suite before she barely had time to register what he did.

She soaped up his muscular body as he did the same to hers. By the time they’d been washed clean, Kenna was panting and aching for Tor to fill her. As he kissed her, she pulled at his hair, desperate to get as close to him as she could get. Tor didn’t seem to mind. He picked her up and put her back against the shower’s tiled wall. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he surged inside her.

Kenna pulled away from his mouth and put her head against the wall and moaned. His thick cock thrust in and out of her pussy, pushing the climax that quickly built ever closer to the surface. Tor growled and groaned, his hard ass flexing as he strained against her.

A whimpered cry tore out of her as an intense orgasm took her over. Tor came with her, his cock pulsing deep inside her as her inner walls clutched him in a tight fist. He dug his fingers into her bottom while he held her tightly to him.

Kenna kissed him tenderly, then laughed. “I didn’t get to do what I wanted to you.”

Tor smiled. “Sorry, I couldn’t wait. And we do have the rest of the night.”

“Very true. And every night after this one for an eternity.”

Once Tor let her down and they rinsed off under the warm spray of water, Kenna led her mate to their bed, then tortured him with her lips and tongue until he flipped her to her back and showed her exactly what she had to look forward to in her future.

The End

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