Runestone (3 page)

And of course, Will had brought her over into a world of mystery and passion. The mansion in Barre, Vermont where he'd resided with his immortal friends was the most decadent home she’d ever set foot in. Will was determined to replicate such luxury in their villa. And the small day trips throughout South America had introduced her to awe-inspiring views and gorgeous peoples.

But when they entered the hotel suite, she was still struck by its splendor. She stared at the crystal light fixtures dripping from the high ceilings and the intricate moldings encompassing the rooms. Baroque wallpapers were set into gilded wall panels, and a small velvet sofa was grouped with two round-backed chairs and a mahogany cabinet, which probably held a TV.

Sean turned to her with a spark in his eyes that made her smile. His handsome features seemed to be lit from the inside out like an immortal’s. For a moment, she forgot why she and Will had agreed to keep him mortal. She only saw that she loved him so much, and the thought of his loss was like a demon clawing at her soul.

A tiny smile of confusion graced the corner of his full mouth, and she shook herself. Remembering Will’s caution. Sean was not at death’s door. And they couldn’t risk losing him to The Calling. For Sean, immortality was a last resort.

A shiver ripped through her, and his smile fell away, eyes narrowing with worry. He gripped her upper arms and brought her up against his long, hard body. “Baby, what’s going on in that head of yours?”

In the back of her mind, she felt Will’s presence. A simple word could bring him into the tunnel between their souls. But the look in Sean’s eyes kept her from Calling to Will. Suddenly, it was as if it was just the two of them again—in his apartment. Playing board games and eating take-out.

A new leaf of love unfurled for him. She encircled his neck with her arms and drew him down for a kiss. A soft, seeking meeting of mouths. Tender awareness sprung up between them, and he angled her head to trail his lips over the spattering of runes and stars on her throat, taking small nipping bites upward. His tongue lashed at her ear, and desire flooded her.

He walked her backward, through a double doorway leading to the bed chamber. “I wish I could hear your thoughts like Will. I wish I could truly excite you when I touch your tattoo.” His murmured words brought her to a halt.

She knew beyond a doubt that Sean would work his charms on her during this trip—try to persuade her to his way of thinking. But she couldn’t let it happen. And honestly, she wanted to put it from her mind for a bit.

Just then, his cell rang. With a sigh, he released her and fished in his jeans pocket for the phone. It flashed to his ear.

“Livingston.” He listened for a moment, and then giving her a smile, he mouthed,
Ron.
His dealer.

She nodded and went about exploring the room. She thought of Will, thousands of miles south in their mountain villa, cracking the whip over the construction crew to get it done before the New Year. His plan was to throw a massive party, and invite his immortal friends for a stay.

With a pang, the memory of meeting that group for the first time trundled through her mind.  She’d been newly immortal, half-mad with The Calling. They’d all been very kind and patient with her, and she realized how important it was for her to get to know them better.

“Evangeline.” Sean’s voice broke through to her, and she turned with a smile.

As he approached, she admired the low cut of his jeans, the way the denim strained just right over his thighs. He wore two fitted tees layered over each other, and the fabric clung to his sculpted pecs, six-pack abs, and the arms he’d earned from years of practicing Tae Kwan Do. A leather band circled his wrist, and his signet ring glinted as he ran a hand through his hair.

She wore the initials of that ring on her right breast—S
L
R. When they’d been reunited in her kidnapper Marcus’s headquarters, she had begged Sean to brand her, to mark her in a way that equaled Will’s blood medallion on her left breast. A medallion of runes and numbers tattooed in his blood, binding them for eternity.

“Ron wants us to meet him in half an hour. There’s a dinner, and some of the buyers are invited. He’d like me to meet them. And I’m ready to show you off in that slinky black dress,” he growled against her throat.

She fidgeted from foot to foot. She hated meeting new people. She never was one for the spotlight. Though she loved writing and playing music, her dreams didn’t extend to the stage, which was why she was so happy with her songwriting career.

“Half an hour?” She felt a little letdown that they wouldn’t have the moment alone she’d been hoping for. Her body hummed from his nearness. How would it feel to make love to him alone after all these months?

A flush stole over her, and perspiration dotted her brow. With a suddenness that stole her breath, he whipped her off her feet and fell with her to the four poster bed, covering her from shoulder to toe with his glorious body.

His dark gaze smoldered down at her. “I don’t need to be privy to your thoughts to know what that blush is about. You want me.”

She squirmed. White heat rode the pathways of every nerve ending, and concentrated in the one spot that had no time to be satisfied. Knowing it would get no satisfaction, the ache grew.

“Tell me you want me, Evangeline. That you’re happy you came with me.”

She rasped the stiff black hair on his jaw. “I’m
so
happy I came. Do we really have to leave in half an hour? That’s hardly time for a quickie.”

His shoulders vibrated with his shiver. He brushed his mouth over hers. “It’s not enough time for us. Having your undivided attention is too appealing, and I want to take my time with you. So come on.” He climbed off her and pulled her to her feet.

She laughed as he plucked at the front of his jeans, adjusting his erection. At least she wouldn’t be tortured alone. He shot her a crooked grin and then tossed her suitcase onto the bed. The zipping sound raised the hair on her neck. His powerful gaze met hers as he drew the black dress from the depths.

“Go freshen up, and then put this on, baby. And take it as the beginning of our foreplay.” Waves of pleasure washed over her at the tone of his voice.

As she slowly drew the dress from his hands and then sashayed to the bathroom, she thought of his hands skimming her curves all night. Of the delightful awareness that her pussy was bare under her the hem of that black dress. And knowing that they’d return to this gorgeous suite and this plush bed, and they could love one another until dawn.

* * * * *

Evangeline stretched languorously, shuddering as the last waves of release passed through her. She and Sean had lain in this bed for hours, kissing and suckling and whispering love words. Being alone with him felt like old times, but the small tremor from being separated from Will which had begun on the plane was now full blown shaking. And Sean’s touch on her immortal tattoo could only provide so much relief.

“You need Will.” Sean’s quiet voice came through the darkness to her. She let her head fall to the right. She studied the outline of his head and his beefy shoulder rising into the air like its own mountain range. The slivers of gray light coming through the draperies lay on his bare flesh like dew.

She couldn’t deny that she needed Will. And for some reason, this made her feel guilty. She needed Sean no less, but if they were separated, her pain and longing would be worn on the inside.

“Have you Called to him recently?”

She sighed. “A little while ago. He calmed my shaking through the link.”

Sean swallowed. When he spoke, his voice was rough. “I never thought it would be this hard for you to be away from him. I guess I’d forgotten. Smoothed it over in my mind.”

When the three of them were together, they seemed to cohabit with ease. Now, the old emotions of uncertainty rose to the top of the pail like oil on water. Rolling onto one hip, she snuggled into his embrace.

“I’ll be okay.” Purposely, she angled her head to give him access to her tattoo. He took the opportunity, lips moving over it slowly as if relishing each rune and star.

Suddenly he stopped, leaning away to look at her. “Evangeline, make me immortal.”

She jerked. For a brief moment, she considered Calling to Will and bringing him into the conversation, and then decided against it. Right now, she needed to focus on Sean.

“Sean, you know I can’t.”

His eyes glittered in the darkness. “You can. You could give me this too, this ability to ease you and care for you and speak into your mind!” Power welled in him with his distress, and she noted the tensing of his muscles.

Laying her hand along his jaw, she said, “Baby, it’s more complicated than that and you know it. We’ve been over this. You cannot choose your immortal mate, and if you are immortal, you will be torn from us to seek your own mate.”

He twisted his gaze from hers. “I’m strong. I know what I want.”

“You can’t control it. You think Will isn’t strong? He didn’t want me, but he didn’t have a choice.”

Sean’s eyes glittered at her and he splayed a hand over her lower back, drawing her closer. “He wanted you. He Made you immortal because he wanted you.”

At the time Will had found her overdosed on a bathroom floor, he had been dating her sister. Though he’d later admitted to Evangeline that he’d been infatuated with her from the start, her lifestyle of drugs and destruction had turned him off.

“When he Made me, he never expected to be tied to me forever.”

“Well, I want that,” he said stubbornly.

“Sweetheart, you know the consequences, and we all understand what the outcome would be. You wouldn’t end up linked to me and Will. You’d be joined to another immortal woman, and none of us want that. Why the sudden need to be immortal? You’re young and healthy. And you aren’t in danger.”

“If you won’t Make me immortal, then marry me.”

His words dropped into the space like bombs, rocking her world. She propped herself up on her arm and looked down at him. “Marry you?” Her voice, always raspy, was now throaty with emotion.

He sat up and gripped her shoulders. “Yes. Tomorrow. We’ll drive down to Las Vegas.”

“But. . . why?”

“I want to be bound to you by more than the mark of my initials on your breast. I want you to know how serious I am about you.”

Her heart flipped at the vehemence of his words and the expression in his dark eyes. He needed this, and she knew it. How could she possibly deny him? And yet, what would Will think?

She tread very carefully, as not to hurt him. “Sean, I know how you feel about me. You don’t need a certificate stating it.”

He released her and folded in half, his elbows on his knees, head tucked to his chest. The picture of his despondence cut her to the bone. “I’m aware of that. But I want it.” He gave her the full force of his stare. “Evangeline, when we lived together in Chicago, I wanted it. If you’d stayed another couple weeks, I would have asked you.”

Remorse flooded her again, remembering that awful night when she’d left him to follow The Calling. He seemed to sense this, and dropped his kiss to her tattoo. She relaxed against him, her mind whirring.

“Marry me,” he said again.

Excitement fluttered in her chest. It blossomed into a warm seed that took root in her love. How could she possibly say no to him? His mortal needs could be fulfilled so easily.

But in the back of her mind, the thought of Will’s reaction plagued her. All of a sudden, she was walking a tightrope between her men, and unknown waters waited below.

Sean captured her face in his big palms. His thumbs pressed lightly at the corners of her mouth as he gazed deeply into her eyes. Dawn was on the horizon, and as the sun filtered into the room, Evangeline could clearly make out the worry on his features. Very slowly, he tilted his forehead against hers. His breath washed over her face. “Please, Evangeline. Elope with me. Be my wife. Make me the happiest man alive.”

Hand over hand, Will scaled the ladder to the first peak of the villa’s roof. As an extreme skier, he was accustomed to heights, and he considered this spot to be his personal thinking place. But maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to be up here with an acute case of the tremors.

Being separated from Evangeline was one of the most difficult challenges of his existence. Every cell in his body urged him to hop a flight for L.A. to stop this God-awful shaking.

She’d been gone little more than a day.

He lifted his hands now and stared at them hard, willing his soul to settle, to realize what his head knew—that she’d be back, and that he was okay. The deep red morning sun shone through the V’s of his splayed fingers and pierced his eyes. It’s too long, his body told him.
You can do it. Sean needed her.

He crumpled his hands into fists and he held them against his body, carefully positioning his feet on either side of the ridge to face the sun. The great orb rose over the valley, bathing the village in a sea of bloody color.

His body said,
she belongs with you. Go after her.

Or he could Call to her.

Swallowing the syllables of her name that sprang to his tongue, he watched the day break. What were she and Sean doing right now? If he Called to her, he could peek into her mind and emotions, but that might further torment him. Instead, he focused on his schedule for the day.

The construction crew would arrive in a few minutes to put the finishing touches on the stone in the master bath. And he had to go down into the village to transfer some funds. For years, he’d juggled his family’s modest fortune, investing and trading and growing it into a sizable sum that would see him and Evangeline through a great number of years, if he continued to carefully nurture it. He’d been Walking the earth for considerably less time than his friends Dante or Nathan—just a handful of decades—but their wealth had paved easier lives for them and their immortal mates, and Will was determined to do the same.

As the sun’s warmth bathed him, he issued a long, contented sigh. Building this villa had been one of the better decisions he’d ever made. Making Evangeline immortal was the best.

Call to her.

Not yet.
The previous night, through their soul link, he had witnessed her in Sean’s arms as he passionately made love to her. He had almost tasted Sean’s masculine, smoky flavor on her tongue as he pinned her to the mattress and kissed her. Her body arched against his, and Will lived every sensation as if he shared her skin. The muscled wall of Sean’s body brushing her sensitive buds, sending the small golden nipple ring shivering.

She opened her mouth under his and accepted his tongue deep even as his thick cock pounded her. Lying back on their bed, with the scents of his lovers in his nose, Will drew his shaft into his hand and rolled it through his firm grip, imagining Evangeline’s tight little pussy or Sean’s ass. He might be shaking from being parted from Evangeline, but the tug in his heart strings told him his attachment to Sean was nearly as deep.

Through their mind link, Will had watched them twist in one another’s arms, existing as one being. Evangeline’s golden limbs glimmered in the moonlight gleaming through their hotel window.

As Will fucked his fist, torturing the shiny head of his cock until it was ready to rupture, he felt Evangeline’s release as though his own. It grew slowly, small pulsations running through the walls of her pussy which were stretched around Sean’s member. Then suddenly, a swift and violent release was upon her, and she was crying his name, and whimpering Will’s as she felt his orgasm too. Her release spurred Sean’s, and with a groan, Will pumped his shaft with long smooth strokes as Sean’s pearly heat soaked Evangeline’s womb.

Will shook himself. On the driveway below, a high-pitched horn bleated. He shifted his focus from the stirring in his cock to the miniature foreign car. It opened up and four laborers poured out. Their laughter carried to him on the breeze.

He took one last look at the sun and felt the promise of the world before him. His valley. His mountains. His future.

* * * *

The midday heat baked Will’s thin cotton shirt to his spine. A drop of sweat rolled down his scalp, causing it to itch. As he meandered through the lazy crowd, which was just waking after siesta, he lifted a hand to ruffle his hair.

The streets were flooded at this time of day with women unpacking their wares for the evening travelers to sort through and perhaps purchase a freshly slaughtered chicken for dinner. Men congregated in the doorways of businesses, calling out like circus barkers, asking if anyone needed a good strong worker.

In the distance over the easternmost mountaintops, the sky was bruised as if a giant had squashed it with his thumb and left a distinct imprint of blood under the pale blue skin. Where their villa was situated, the altitudes were high enough to keep a constant chill in the air, and there was a possibility that the rain would coat everything in ice.

Quickening his pace, Will crossed the street to the bank on the corner. As he reached the cool recesses, images flashed across his vision—an airport, Evangeline’s hand tight in Sean’s, and a taxi. He blinked, and it was gone.
Must be channeling images through their link
, he thought. He reached into his back pocket for his wallet and made his way toward the long mahogany desk where his personal advisor sat.

“SenBor Will,” he said at once, a grin breaking over his face. He stood to pump Will’s hand, and then they both took a seat. But not before words echoed in Will’s hearing. “Heavenly Chapel on the Strip.”

He gripped the edge of the desk. What the—?

“Water for Mr. Cochran,” the advisor called to a female employee. Then he leaned across the desk with concern knitting his black brows. “Are you all right, SenBor? You look suddenly pale. Perhaps the heat. . . . ”

Will shook his head, trying to dispel the feeling of terrible unease that ran through him.

Evangeline.

His Call ripped open a portion of her soul, through which he pitched headlong. Blinding lights, buildings and signs flashing past her vision. And Sean at her side, his mouth at her ear, whispering loving words.

He stroked her ring finger. “I promise to put a ring on this finger the moment we arrive. I want you in every way, Evangeline, and I won’t be happy until I’ve had it all.”

Will shoved back his chair so quickly, it toppled over with a crash. The armed guard at the door was swiftly at his side, afraid Will might be a threat to the bank’s security. His advisor rattled off a stream of Spanish to the guard, who backed off.

The woman appeared with the glass of water, but Will shooed her away.

Married.

Will!

Pain shot through his heart and radiated to every capillary of his body.
You’re eloping?

Will, please don’t be angry. I wasn’t hiding it from you.
As her mental voice filled his mind, a violent tremor racked him.

His advisor came around the desk and gripped him by the shoulder. “Mr. Cochran, can we call you an ambulance?”

An ambulance? He needed fucking beamed up right now and his molecules transported to Vegas!

A goddamn wedding chapel in Vegas? All nice and cozy with no thought to me at all?

N. . . no. Will, please understand. I never would have allowed it to happen without Calling to you.

No, I don’t know that. Evangeline, did you hide this from me all along?

Oh, my God, no! Will, it was a last-minute decision, made soon after we arrived. We were going to drive, but in the end, we hopped a flight.

And you couldn’t have Called to me after the decision was made? There wasn’t time on the flight to speak a few words with your immortal mate. . .
He ground the last two words through his mental molars. . .
and let him know you’re getting married?

He could see her shaking, knew her fingers were pressed to the tattoo at her temple. He could easily calm her, but refused to. Anger reared inside him, an ugly monster barricading him from her charms. She hadn’t bothered to care about his needs and that stung worse than the idea of them getting married without him.

She burst into tears. Sean’s rugged face loomed into her vision, creased with concern. He spoke softly to her, but Will heard him loud and clear. He heard that Sean had strove to hide this from him. That he’d gone behind his back. That perhaps the friendship and love forged between their male hearts wasn’t what Will believed.

“Fuck,” he said, jamming a hand through his hair. He looked up into the worried eyes of his advisor, spoke a few words to him, and then left the bank.

Outside, the breeze had kicked up, and dust and debris swirled through the main street. Will put his head down to protect his eyes, and started off toward home. This afternoon, it had seemed a good idea to walk into the village, but now he cursed himself for not having ridden his new bike, a Ducati 1198. Taking the steep, neck-breaking curves up the mountain to his villa at top speed might ease his heart.

Through Evangeline’s link, Sean’s voice sounded. “Will, don’t block her out. This was my doing. If you’re going to be pissed, take it out on me.”

Damn, if only he could rage into Sean’s mind! He’d show him just how hard a mental blow could be. And finding out that his immortal mate was eloping with their mutual lover without first consulting him was about as big a hit as a person could take.

“Will, her shaking is out of control. Dammit, you calm her!”

He stopped walking and clutched his head. The sun blinked in and out of the threatening clouds, and the wind whipped his shoulder-length hair straight back. Evangeline’s shivers rolled through her and into him, creating a deep nausea and aching in his bones.

Suddenly he thought of her beautiful blooming face, tipped to Sean’s as they exchanged vows. Was it so different from claiming her as an immortal mate? In the beginning, Will had stolen her from Sean without explanation. And yet, he thought their relationship had evolved since then.

Will, please forgive me.

He drew a deep, shuddering breath. Above all, her happiness took priority.

A muffled shot rang out from his left. His head snapped up. He focused on the pulsating glow of a life being blinked out in a shadowy alley between two buildings. And then he caught the scent—that wild, pungent smell of fresh blood. Not any blood. But immortal blood. Immortal blood being spilled in the alley. Immortal blood spilled by another immortal.

Forgiven.

Her excitement welled inside him.
Really?

Really. I love you both. Now go get hitched,
he said into her mind. He telepathically pressed on her immortal tattoo, and then snapped their link shut.

* * * * *

“You heartless bastard!” The guttural cry tore from the dying man’s throat. Blood bubbled from his lips and dribbled down his paper-white chin. The sickening tang of bile hit Will’s senses, warning him to turn away. But he couldn’t.

The murderer hunched over his victim, a reeking column of sweat soaking the spine of his crumpled linen shirt. The steel in his hand flashed as he waved it at the dying immortal. “Enjoy your parting breaths, my man. Your life was over a long time ago, when Marcus put the hit out on you.”

Will jerked.
It can’t be.

Images spun through his brain like a macabre carousel, moving close, and then receding to allow the next mental snapshot to fill his head. The back of Marcus’s hand connecting with Evangeline’s cheek. Striding across a yard with her in his hold, dumping her into a deep pit. Marcus’s limp body swinging between him and Sean as they tossed him into that same pit after they’d rescued Evangeline.

Marcus was dead. Will had pulled the trigger.

“Why. . . ?” The dying man’s Adam’s apple worked. Blood frothed on his lips, and Will knew he only had seconds. “Why me?” His chest started to heave, his back arching off the filthy pavement as he fought the Grim Reaper.

The wind whipped up again, screaming through the alley. Behind Will, the street churned with people hurrying to close up their market stalls before the storm hit. Why had no one heard the shot?

“You know why, Amsdell.” The assailant nudged him with the sleek handgun again, and he bucked harder. “No one stands in Marcus’s way. He sees the bigger picture, you know.”

In a heartbeat, Will processed this.
Sees. He thinks Marcus is still alive. He’s just doing his dirty work for him.

But what bigger picture? With his own ears, Will had heard Marcus’s reasons for kidnapping Evangeline—a twisted way to make up for the loss of his own immortal mate when their Calling had ended badly, and he’d killed the female with his blood.

A new fury rose inside Will. As long as there were immortals Walking who could threaten Evangeline or even Sean—though Will was seething at him right now—he couldn’t rest. And if this man was killing immortals on Marcus’s orders, Will had to find out why.

His muscles coiled, and he sprang, catching the man around the throat and tearing him off his feet. Will slammed him with all his weight, pinning him to the ground. The stench of sweat, fear and evil filled his nose. The immortal’s coppery skin felt oily under his palm as he clamped a hand over his throat. The weapon clattered to the ground.