Taboo Kisses (27 page)

In denial! Maximus allowed Sameya to handle the situation.

“He taunted more than once how he’d like to see me fall to my alpha mate, E’Nesk
ha
.”

“You two never got along.
Have you found your mate? Is that part of all of this?
”
The Atlantian leader shot a cagey glance at him and Gabriel.

“I wouldn’t sleep with
Lucius
even after he tried to force me. When I kicked his ass,
it
made things worse.” Maximus’s fangs hit his bottom lip and the tiger beside him executed
a low grumble of displeasure in the back of his throat. Sameya ignored them. “One
day he’d tease that my mate was a vampyr. The next day a shifter. I thought he was
being a jackass like always, but…he knew, E’Neskha. I’m certain of it.
Even you cannot deny he resents my position with you.
”

“
Sameya, he is my
baby
brother,” the words
were
nothing more than a whisper.
The horror etched onto the woman’s face said it all.
Confirmed b
etrayal
would rip
her soul apart.

“
I’m sorry. I wish I could come to another conclusion. But the facts are mounting against
him. I raped Tyrone Gryphon’s memories
,
and confirmed, as we suspected
,
the traitor resides in Atlantis. But only fuzzy images of the infidel remain in his
head.” She motioned toward Gryphon to indicate whose head she referred to. “Adjusting
memories is one of Lucius’ gifts.
No other.
Maybe
he adjusted your memory with his power so you’d think he was injured when he really
wasn’t. It’d
further his cause.
”
Seemed plausible to Maximus.
For the first time,
Sameya
offered solace and placed her palm on her leader’s shoulder. “If it’s any consolation,
I don’t believe he’d harm you. Me, yes, but not you.”

Silence lapsed between them as they stared at one another. Maximus wished he
grasped
the inner workings of a woman’s mind, but he couldn’t glean what these two were thinking.

“For good or bad, E’Neskha, we must return to Atlantis and—”

“I’m returning forthwith. I’ll confront Lucius.” The Empress sniffled
,
and Sameya nodded.

“
You know he won’t confess his deeds, but
I’ll join you.”

“We’re coming with you.” Sameya jerked to face Maximus, while her Empress swiveled
toward
them
, her gaze shrewd
. Before his siren could argue, he said, “No way are we letting you out of our sight
with your life in
jeopardy
.”

“Get over yourself, Maximus. I can take care of myself.”

“
Made all the more obvious by our recent capture
.” He made a show of flashing his fangs. Gabriel would’ve understood it was his silent
way of saying ‘that’s the end of the conversation’. Sameya’s violet eyes
flared
,
and her jaw hardened in a clear sign of mutiny. “
We need to be there to
assist
should your secret be turned against you
once more
.”

“A nick of wormwood brought you down, Maximus. How’s that helping?” Ouch. She hit
below the belt with that one.

“It took ten of them to bring me down.” Gabriel
st
alked
to Sameya and got in her face. “You’re not going without us.”

“Don’t get cocky, shifter.
With my
choker
gone
, I could serenade you easily.
The weakest
siren
in
Atlantis could
. Turned against me, you’re a whole shitload of help!”

A rumbling came from deep within Gabriel’s throat.

In case she didn’t get the hint,
Maximus said, “
S
o you know, you’ve
pissed him off.”

“
Which one of
them
is your mate, Sameya
?” The Empress peered between the three of them
, her interest
obvious in the fine lines fanning from the corners of her eyes
.
“You said Lucius teased you about a vampyr and
a
shifter, so which one of them w
eakened you enough Lucius’
men could bring you down?”

Sameya cast a nervous peek at them, then squared her shoulders and said, “Both.”

Eyes widening,
t
he
leade
r
’s
mouth parted. “Mated to a shifter and
a
vampyr?”

“Yes.” Sameya dragged the word out. “I’ve not committed to remain with them.” She
glanced between him and Gabriel. “And they know that.”

“Nonsense.” Empress E’Neskha’s chin notched higher. “Only a fool turns down the blessing
of multiple
mates, even if they are outside your race.
”

Maximus grinned at Sameya. Oh, how he
suddenly adored
her Empress.

“But—”

“No buts.” The Empress interrupted
his woman
. “They’ll return to Atlantis with us.”

“Thank you. I owe you.” Gabriel chucked their mate
’s chin
while speaking to the
Atlantian leader
. “I’m glad to know your Empress is sensible
, especially when you’re not
.”

“
All I ask is that you protect Sameya
,
”
E’Neskha said
.

That went without saying.

“This will only incite the propaganda against you.” Sameya rubbed her forehead. “Those
who want you out of your seat of power will use this to
demonstrate
how you’re changing Atlantis. Not for the good either because no one likes foreigners
within.”

“What of the witch over there?”
Sameya glanced at Kat when E’Neskha asked about her. Maximus had almost forgotten
she was present.

Sameya was the one who responded
to the leader’s
question
. “That’s their familiar.”

“Friend,” Maximus corrected.

“She does
magic
for you
for free. In our world, that’s a familiar.
” She narrowed her gaze on the witch in question. “E’Neskha,
I do have an idea
that might rattle Lucius enough to
make a mistake
, but
you’ll have to hold off on confronting him
,
and
I can’t tell you
what the idea is
because I need your surprise to be genuine. I’ll need to bring the witch with me
to set the plan in motion
.”

A brief nod from the leader. “Granted.”

“No one said anything about Kat coming.” Maximus shook his head.
Placing their friend in danger wasn’t part of any deal.

“Too bad.” Sameya tossed him a flat smile. “The witch tags along
,
or none of you are part of my plan.”

“See it done within the next hour. I’ll be expecting you in the Hall
forthwith
.” With a softly spoken word Maximus didn’t catch, the Empress vanished into a
green
mist
that evaporated with her departure
.

As Maximus attempted to figure out how the hell the other woman disappeared,
Sameya
turned to the tiger
and
became
all business
. “Gabriel,
while in Atlantis,
you’ll need to shift to your fur and remain that way when you’re not in my quarters.
A siren
won’t try to
serenade a real
tiger
,
and
I’d prefe
r no one know you’re a shifter. Things will go smoother if everyone
believe
s
you’re a
n
authentic tiger.
Safer that way.
”

“Done. But so long as you understand I will guard you with my life
,
and I’ll kill anything that even thinks of harming one hair on your head.”

Her expression softened
.
“
Ditto, tiger
.”

“Sameya, about Kat—”

“Don’t.” S
he swiped her hand through the
air, cutting Maximus off.
He
adored her bossiness, but not her willingness to endanger herself. “The witch is strong
enough to hinder a few sirens. They won’t expect her to retaliate
if they believe she’s been serenaded
. Any surprise we can get
against
Lucius
is
welcome.”

“You’re endangering Kat’s life.” That wasn’t something Maximus would tolerate.
The fact she was so caval
ier
about her own life bothered him.

Stubbornness set in her jaw
,
defiance
flashed in her violet
eyes
.
Before she spoke, he knew she wouldn’t back down.
“Your choice, leech.” They were back to name-calling
,
and he bit back
a
grin. “She comes or you don’t.”

“What’s my role
to be
?”

“You’ll be exactly what you are.” He elevated an eyebrow, not seeing how this helped
her position. “But you’ll be collared so everyone will think you’re charmed. I’ll
lead you about with a leash.” Her eyes were positively alive with the idea
, probably anticipating a little payback
.
“Kat and Gabriel will be leashed, as well.”

Maximus would
follow her anywhere
, do anything for her…b
ut he’d never been collared like one of the subs at the local BDSM establishment.
Yeah, he’d put one on her and a few other women over the years. The idea of one snapping
about his throat though
, that was an uncomfortable thought.
“It’s only for show? And only outside your bedroom?”

A black eyebrow elevated.
“
Worried I’ll use it against you the way you did me, Maximus?”

“Frankly, yes.”

“So little faith.” She made a tsking sound.
“
The collar won’t really be charmed. You’ll be pretending.
I
would never do that to you.”

Subtle, but he got her point. He’d charmed her
to his will
without regret, but when the tables were turned hers was for pretend…and
for
a higher purpose. “Very well.
I consent to being ‘charmed’ by you.
”

The fucking truth because he’d never allowed anyone to parade him around like a
Goddamn
pet
before
.
Pride rebelled against the notion, but he’d
degrade himself in front of others for her or Gabriel.
If it meant keeping her safe, he’d do just about anything.

Chapter
Twenty-One

Kat infused magic into the collar Maximus
would wear
. Just enough
mojo
that anyone would believe
Sameya had
actually charmed a vampyr since she couldn’t serenade one
, but not enough to force him to do her bidding if he wasn’t so inclined.

Black
,
just like the clothes he wore, she ran her fingers over the soft leather as she peered
up at him. “If there was any other way, I’d—”

Maximus dragged her against his chest and devoured her mouth in a hot, wet kiss. With
his tongue in her mouth
curling around
hers, he palmed her thigh, slid his hand to the back of her knee
,
and hooked her leg around his hip.
His erection pressed against her pussy
,
and she moaned into his mouth. The collar all but forgotten, she slid her fingers
into his hair and clung to him.

She groaned a protest when he ended the embrace. With his mouth skimming hers and
kissing the corners of her lips, he said, “Do it now before I change my mind.”

Sameya blinked, having trouble adjusting from arousal to reality.