Chapter Twelve

Finn sat and pulled Pepper onto his lap, his mouth never leaving hers. The sensual assault threatened to drown her in pleasure. He ran his hands up and down her back, teasing the back of her neck and down again. The pleasure overwhelmed her, radiating out from every point of contact, bouncing through her blood, building in wave after wave.

A knock at the door burst the bubble around them. Finn pulled back. “Dammit.”

She wiggled off his lap, laughing. “Pizza.” She would have gone for the door, but he dragged her back with a hard kiss and set her on the bed.

“Stay.” He pointed. His shirt was half open revealing his sculpted chest, decorated in black ink. She’d only seen him in dress shirts, but beneath the pressed linen appearance, he looked more like a gladiator.

He opened the door, took the tray, and shooed room service away. Her stomach growled at the fresh whiff of pizza, an experience she was still getting used to. Finn flipped open the lid, and withdrew a piece. Carrying over the slice, he eyed her shirt. “I’ll trade you a bite for each article of clothing you’re wearing.”

Pepper burst out laughing. “Good thing I’m not shy.” She unfastened her vest and slid it off and received a bite for her trouble. She took her time, chewing it and enjoying his absolute look of fascination with her mouth. Swallowing, she reached for the buttons on her blouse. Unfastening them one at a time, she could barely hide her smile as his gaze followed. The thin, white lace bra covered her breasts and she took a moment to lay the shirt alongside her vest.

“Bite?” She reminded him. Finn cleared his throat and held out the slice. His hand trembled, ever so slightly.

Rising from the bed, she continued to chew and slid off her shoes. Amusement curled through her desire. He frowned.

“You said a bite for each article of clothing. Shoes may be an accessory, but I am still wearing them.” She grinned at his low growl and reached for the fastener on her pants. They fell in a silky pile and his sudden draw of breath added to her reward. The lace panties matched her bra. Demure as a princess, she crawled onto the bed and opened her mouth expectantly.

Finn sighed. “This was not my best idea.” But he fed her and she grinned.

“I like it. You make the most wonderful faces.”

His jaw flexed and she imagined she could see a vein pulsing in his forehead. Boldly she let her own gaze travel over him.

“I’m torn,” she murmured.

“About?” He cleared his throat.

“About whether I’ll let you feed me unless you start getting naked too. Fair being fair.” She ran her fingers through her hair, and pulled out the pair of clips she’d used to style it. “Unless you’d like to eat yourself.”

He held what remained of the slice between his teeth and stripped, a great deal faster than an article per bite—in fact, he didn’t bother to wait at all. Shirt, shoes and pants hit the floor until all that remained were a pair of black cotton boxer shorts. It was Pepper’s turn to try and not swallow her tongue. Hard lean muscle wrapped around his frame, as did finely crafted tattoos, ink embedded in his skin in swirls from his shoulders across his back and down both arms—odd because when his arms had been bare before, she’d only seen a hint of the curved lines. It formed a shirt effect against his chest, and down the ripples of his abs and lower still.

Unable to help herself, she traced one of the patterns with a trembling finger. Beneath such a civil veneer, there was no denying his utter masculinity or primal being. The tattoos gave him a rough edge, a dangerous air. Her stomach tightened and her thighs clenched.

Lifting her gaze, she met his stormy one. “I don’t think I’m hungry for pizza anymore.”

He tossed the unfinished slice back onto the tray and reached for her. They came together in a devastating kiss. They moaned into each other’s mouths. Her bra vanished in a snap and cool air reached her breasts, but he warmed them with his hands. Pressing into him, she groaned as he kneaded and massaged the soft flesh. His thumbs grazed over her nipples and she went liquid with the boiling heat racing through her.

“Finn…” She dug her fingers into his shoulders. He bent her back onto the bed, cradling her and lowered his head to claim one nipple. A fresh riot of sensations assaulted her and she strained against him, wanting his mouth back for a kiss but desperate for more of his touch.

Breath tangling in her throat, she rubbed her palms against his back and explored lower. His flesh was so hot. Cupping his ass, she groaned at the hard pull of his mouth on her nipple. Two fingers tucked into her panties, and he gave a hard tug, ripping the flimsy seams on the lace apart.

He skated a hand over her hip. God, he smelled so good. Earthy and male and hot sunshine. Trailing his mouth across the valley between her breasts, he teased the other nipple and then abandoned them completely. Kissing a wet path across her belly until he reached her thighs. She tensed, but he nudged her legs apart and blew a breath against the wetness of her sex.

Shuddering at the contact, she squirmed. She knew she was eager, almost too eager. Arching her hips to him, she imagined what it would be to have his mouth on her and even better, what it would feel like to have his cock push inside her. She’d had sex all of three times before ever arriving at the casino and none of those instances came even close to this and he barely touched her, his thumb just barely grazing her clit.

“Do you like this?” The dark whisper caressed her ragged senses.

Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth and she nodded, not quite trusting herself to speak. He pressed harder against her clit and she moaned long and deep. Not giving her a moment to ride that eddy of pleasure, he bent his head between her legs and gave her sex a long lick. Stubble on his cheeks rasped against her and added a sting to the wild craving he unleashed in her. He took his time, nibbling kisses against the inside of her thighs and then back, before finally drawing her clit between his teeth.

A scream ripped free and she thrashed on the bed. Finn braced her, but he didn’t let up, working his mouth against her and her brain shut off until her orgasm came intense and fast. Shuddering, she drifted back to earth and the sense of his mouth still kissing her, every touch of his fingers or tongue or lips sent fresh jolts of electricity through her.

The lust winding through her veins exploded. She tired of just accepting pleasure and wanted to give some back. She tugged at him and he came willingly, working his way up, teasing her belly button with a kiss and then her breasts. Somewhere along the way he lost his boxers and his cock pressed hard against her.

When he gazed down at her, breath clogged in her throat. Everything in the world faded save for him and staring into his eyes. She whispered, “I think I love you.”

He stilled against her, one hand braced on the bed and a smile, soft and kind, curved his lips. “You think?”

Tracing the line of muscle along his back, she nodded. “It’s kind of hard to think right now. I’m not exactly in an objective mood. All I want to do is feel…but I think I do love you.” It didn’t matter they hadn’t known each other that long. It didn’t matter about her disease. It didn’t matter that they’d just argued. All that mattered was him. He made her laugh, he looked after her so gallantly, and the way he stared at her right now…it imprinted his name on her heart. She yearned to stay right there, vulnerable and yet safe against him.

She didn’t care if he was dangerous to everyone else, he wasn’t a threat to her. He’d never been. It all seemed to click inside of her—from the moment she approached his table to his good humor at her ridiculous lies to the playful games in the casino and the protective walks back to her room.

Liking and loving might be worlds apart, but the barrier between those worlds seemed to shred with every brush of his skin on hers.

How did she end up so lucky, living long enough to meet him when she could have been dust in a grave decades ago? He sealed his mouth against hers and the passion stirred again, but so did the sweetness. He didn’t try dominate or demand, instead he was thoughtful and giving—tender. He trailed his kiss from her mouth to her ear, driving her wild. His breath teased her earlobe. “I think I love you too.”

Sliding his hands under her thighs, he lifted her and rose up to his knees, entering her in one hard thrust.

Holy crap… The far from romantic thought ricocheted through her brain. She didn’t think she could want him more, but her need went out of control. Every thrust drove him deeper, stretching and filling her. She clung to him, wrapping her legs around his waist. He lifted her, cradling her and pistoned his hips. Every stroke drove her closer to the edge.

Every delicious glide of his skin against hers released fresh waves of friction. He squeezed her ass and pushed her down to meet his thrust, as her second orgasm built to unbearable pressure—her back arched from the force of it and then she came, crying out. She thought she heard him call her name and he came with her, his body one hard cord of muscle, straining against her. They dropped back onto the bed, his face buried against her throat.

Muscles trembling, she floated on the pleasurable little shocks running through her. His lips pressed against her shoulder, and even that light touch sent off another wave. Running her hand up his back, she thought to lift his head for a kiss.

But the black ink on her skin stopped her.

“Finn…” She whispered.

“Hmm?” He lifted his head, eyes half-closed.

“Your tattoo rubbed off on me.”

“What?” He pushed up higher and Pepper glanced down. Half the tattoo on his chest was gone…and worse still, it was now on her.

Slipping over to lay on his side, Finn studied her. Pepper wasn’t wrong, half of his tattoo had worked its way off his body. It swirled around from one of her nipples and completely encased one breast and up over her shoulder and down her back. Even as he watched, it continued to spread over her body, feathering the swell of her left hip and further. It faded in color the further away from her heart it traveled, but it was still there.

Stretching his arm out, he frowned—he didn’t know how he felt about it. Heart thudding, he traced the path of the tattoo around her breast. “It’s okay, I think.”

“You think?” Her eyes were wide and fringed by darker lashes. “Why is it on me?” Stress elongated her consonants, and she rubbed her fingers against the spreading ink to no avail.

“I have no idea.” And he didn’t. The tattoo was his mother’s work, the spell she embedded into his body. He could disguise it with clothing, and it didn’t reach up his neck or color his face, hands or feet. Most of the time it stayed on his back, but with all the magic in the casino, it had grown across his body. But it had never left him before and he certainly wasn’t a virgin. So what happened?

Pepper scooted up and sat, looking at herself in the mirror. Unabashed by her own nudity, she appeared even more remarkable with the dark ink against her pale skin.

“Does it hurt?” Damn his mother for being dead. At least if she were alive she could answer his questions or help him help Pepper. Dead, she left him another chapter to sort out on his own.

“No.” She shook her head and glanced over her shoulder back at him. “It tingles some…but that could just be me…well, you.”

Her cheeks went rosy and Finn snaked an arm around her waist to pull her back to him. Despite the craziness of the situation, she seemed to be adjusting to it well—too well. Was it the tattoo itself? Was the magic doing something to her? He would never hurt her, and that tattoo was part of him. Maybe on some level she sensed that. Cradling her face, he kissed her. “I’m tingling too, if that makes you feel any better.” Her kisses were a drug and he was rapidly becoming an addict.

“You did say you thought you loved me.” Her shy question dragged another smile out of him.

“I did. As I recall, you said the same thing.” When she’d whispered it to him it, her voice husky and trembling, his heart had stuttered. All the air had left his body and it felt a great deal like dying. Then she’d kissed him and he’d come to life again.

“I know. I’m a little embarrassed that I said ‘I think,’ rather than saying it with any certainty.” She rested against his chest, a delicate feminine blanket draping him.

He chuckled. “Are you certain now?”

“You’re perfect.” Pepper lifted her head and kissed his jaw. “You’re funny. You’re sweet. You’re damn near heroic with your offers to sweep me away to safety. But love is a funny thing. I can say I love iced tea, and fries and chocolate covered donuts…but I can live without all of them. I don’t know that I want to find out if I can live without you.”

The pressure around his heart increased to the point of being painful. Unfamiliar emotion rolled through him like a storm unleashing a great bolt of lightning, sizzling the air and making the hairs on his body stand up. “I know I don’t want to find out if I can’t live without you.” Because he didn’t think he could. “I’ve been numb for a long time, I don’t think I realized how much until now.”

Hot on the heels of pain came worry and guilt. “I don’t want to leave you here, Pepper. I know you keep saying your options are go back to the theatre or leave and die, but there has to be another way…”

“One that doesn’t involve deals with demons or hurting Heidi?” She was so adamant on that point.

“Would you rather die than hurt them? They’re hardly helpless.” He didn’t owe either one a damn thing, in fact, he’d prefer tying the manipulative pair into a sack and tossing them both in a river. Let them fight it out on their own. 

The ink continued to slide over Pepper’s skin, but he had no idea what the hell that meant, except… The tattoo may mean you can’t stay, even if you want.

Horror bloomed in her eyes. He cleared his throat, dragging her closer and hugging her. He didn’t even like a few inches of separation.

What the hell was happening to him? Old feelings began welling up in him, coming out of nowhere. 

“I mean it, Finn. I don’t care about the demon,” Pepper admitted with a half-laugh. “But I love all the girls and Heidi. I can’t…I won’t ask them to give up their safety for mine.”

“You wouldn’t be the one asking.” His resolve hardened. She wouldn’t have to ask at all. Heidi already made the offer and every passing second made it more tempting. “If my mother were alive, we could ask her. I know she’d have an answer.” His voice broke, a harsh guttural sound. Dammit his chest hurt, like battery acid poured on an open wound. 

Pepper stared up at him. “You’re crying.”

He touched his face and his fingers came away damp. Blinking, he tried to make it stop, but his eyes burned to match the pain in his chest.

“Finn?” Pepper grasped his hand and brought it to her lips to kiss. “Are you okay?”

“My mother died.” He exhaled the words on a shuddering breath and the vise around his heart cut into him. “I know I didn’t like her most of the time, but she died.”

“I’m sorry.” Her sympathy couldn’t erase the wave of grief, but it did ease him. “I’m really sorry.” She kissed his hand again and he frowned.

The tears were hot on his face, why was it cutting him now? Why not after the first phone call or the second? Or when he arrived and Fairuk confirmed it? What the hell was wrong with him? Pepper didn’t offer any more words, she just wrapped herself around him and held him tight. He fought to stem the tidal wave of grief. It didn’t make any sense. They hadn’t even spoken in four—or was it five decades? Half the time, he couldn’t even be certain he could pick the woman out of a crowd.

Losing her hadn’t meant much, until…

Sitting up, his head collided with Pepper’s.

“Ow.” She rubbed the spot and looked at him with concern. But Finn pushed her away, studying where the tattoo was on her now. It was sinking deeper into her skin, completely encasing her bare left side in swirls and curly cues like some medieval hedge maze left to go wild.

It wasn’t possible, was it? The only explanation was the trap spell, the burgeoning power that he fed to his mother through the ties she bound him with in her womb. Power that had nowhere to go after she died. Power he could control, most of the time. “Sorry,” he said. “How do you feel?”

He focused on the tattoo and tried to will it back to him. But not even a whisper of power stirred over him. Whatever it was doing, he wasn’t allowed to make it stop.

“I feel fine. Actually, I feel a lot better than fine. I’m loose and relaxed. I’ve been tired for the last four days, but I’m not tired now.” She rubbed her palm against his cheek and grinned. 

“You’re taking this very well.”

“No, I think I’m freaking out on the inside. But I’m not in danger. I can feel it. Your tattoo is a whole lot better than being possessed by a demon. Maybe we should eat. I get really emotional when I’m hungry too.” 

Seeing only gentle teasing and a wistful smile on Pepper’s face, he tried to find the words. She was taking it so damn well—better than he was. The trust in her eyes begged him to say everything was okay. “It’s not hunger, it’s…” How the hell could he describe it? It was like discovering he’d seen and heard the world through layers of cotton and someone had just ripped all the stuffing away.

“It’s what?” Pepper prompted him. The strain around her eyes lightened, and the lines around her mouth smoothed, showing only amusement.

“I’ll be a son of a bitch.” Finn slid toward the edge of the bed.

“What?”

“Hang on. I need a witch.” He grabbed his boxers and pulled them on. Pepper twisted on the bed to watch him.

“What do you need a witch for?”

He ignored the question for a moment and grabbed the phone. He had no idea what the theatre phone number was so he called the front desk and asked to be connected. “Tell her it’s Finn Mikelson.” 

Impatience beat a steady cadence through him, rifling the grief and muddying it with hope. Breathe. Pepper rose from the bed and went to the pizza, unabashed by her nudity. The tattoo continued to fill in across her back, spreading out like a pair of graceful butterfly wings.

“So, you finally shagged her?” Was how Heidi answered the phone.

He wasn’t even going to ask how she knew. “Does it mean what I think it means?”

“That depends.” The stage manager’s droll response might be charming to some, but it only managed to irritate him. “What do you think it means?”

“My mother’s spell. She’s part of it now?”

“Ahhh, yes. Marguerite DuBois’s forte was the trap spell, Mr. Mikelson. You of all people should know that. What she did to you trapped more than magic.”

“Okay, there’s a time for vague, mysterious answers and there’s a time for a straight up fucking truth.” Aggravation raked him. “More of the latter, please.”

“You want a straight up fucking truth, do you?” Heidi laughed. “Sex is the oldest magic there is. You love her, you became one with her, you broke the shackle on your heart, and now your mother’s magic has ensnared her as well because you made Pepper vital to you.”

And that same magic had kept him alive for over two hundred years. “So she won’t die?” 

Pepper wheeled around to face him. “What?” 

“Well, I can’t say for certain that she’s immortal, but then neither are you. But she’s not going to die today. As long as you value her, as long as you love her—the magic that protects you will protect her.” She said something else, but Finn didn’t hear it all until she cleared her throat.

“What?”

“I said, she might have been a cold-hearted, ruthless bitch, but don’t underestimate a mother’s love. You were the most important thing to her—you and power. So she encased you in it. And I can’t have that power anywhere near the theatre. Tell Pepper that while I valued her services greatly, I’m afraid I don’t want to see her here again. Or you, Mr. Mikelson. Ta ta for now.” There was a click and dial tone.

Finn stared at it and laughed. His mother won. Even when the old bat died, she won.

“What was that about not dying?” asked Pepper. 

“Nothing.”

“Nothing? You can’t just say that and say it’s nothing. You’re a little nuts, you know that?” Pepper leaned against the dresser, nibbling on a piece of pizza.

“No, I’m absolutely crazy.” He dropped the phone back into the cradle and swooped her up into his arms. He carried her and the pizza back to the bed, settling her on his lap.

“Do I dare ask?”

“Well…Heidi and your friends are safe and Connor—the demon—is going to be pissed. I’ll explain everything in the car. But right now kiss me and then we pack.”

She blinked. “I’m confused.”

“So was I…but not anymore. I don’t just think I love you, I know I do.” He kissed her.

“I…”

“Shh, no. You don’t have to say anything in fact, I want you go on ‘thinking’ you love me until I earn it. We’re going to do everything you ever dreamed of and more.” His mother had died and that hurt, but her death had brought him here and here he found his life…and his heart. Both belonged to Pepper.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“This.” He traced the tattoo over her shoulder. “Is the answer…the one Heidi said I had. The magic will keep you alive and healthy.”

Her smile vanished, disbelief heavy in her face. “What?”

“The spell protects me. My crazy, power hungry, selfish mother—I love that old bitch. She put this spell on me to protect me, to feed her power and to keep me safe. Losing you would destroy me—so now it protects you too. Heidi said we didn’t need an answer, we needed power. I have a feeling—that will do the same for you.”

“But…” She swallowed and shook her head. “That means I have to eat magic. I wonder what it tastes like?”

Finn laughed. “Like a cross between blue and algebra. Seriously, honey, it doesn’t work like that. Magic is everywhere in the world, little drips and drabs, big and small. You’ll leach it right out of the air, it will always take the edge off and it will keep you alive—alive and free.”

“That seems way too good to be true.”

“Well we have the rest of our lives to find out. But right now…as much as I’d like to make love to you again, we’re going. We need to pack. Heidi doesn’t want to see you here again. You can’t control the ability, so you’re a danger to everyone here and I want us gone before Connor realizes he’s lost.”

Kissing her again, he rose and pulled on his clothes. He’d have to burn the bed sheets, but right now he didn’t care. Pepper stared at him as he raced around the room, tossing his things into the overnight case. He ignored the surveillance equipment. He was done with that cover—that job—that life. He’d resign tomorrow, or maybe just disappear. It wasn’t the first time he’d had to reinvent himself. And he wanted a new life with Pepper.

“Ahem.”

She still sat on the bed, naked with the pizza box propped on her lap. “Come on sweetheart,” said Finn. “Get dressed. We’ll pack you next.”

“I think you’ve forgotten something.”

He froze. “What?”

“You didn’t ask me if I wanted to go.”

Everything crashed to a halt and his heart thudded against his ribs. What if she didn’t want to go?

“Need I remind you that we’re two, not one? A lady likes to be asked.”

Returning to the bed, he dropped down on one knee and took her hand. “Pepper, will you come with me? Will you come see the world? Play with me every day, have sex with me every night, and turn your thoughts into reality? Will you let me love you and keep you safe?”

Her eyes filled with tears and she pushed aside the pizza box to hug him. “Yes.”

He sighed with relief. These unlocked emotions of his were hard to control. “Are you always going to be this mean to me?”

“Oh yes, especially when you get all high and mighty and decisive. I love a strong man, but I have to have a say in my future.”

“Okay, kick me when I forget that.”

She chuckled and kissed his jaw. “I absolutely promise to kick you anytime you forget. I think that’s why I love you so much.”

“I think that’s why I love you too.” He pinched her bottom. “Now please get dressed. We need to go.”

“Yes, sir.” She scrabbled away from him and grabbed her clothes. Even her movements seemed freer somewhere, lighter—or maybe that was him.

“Ready?” Pepper slid on her shoes.

“Yep. Let me just burn this stuff.” He stripped the bed and used the last of his burn bags. Some habits it just didn’t pay to break. When they left the room, he glanced back at the emptiness. Hard to believe he found his future in this damned casino. Closing his eyes for a moment, he bowed his head.

Thank you, mama.