Burdened by Desire Read online

  Jenna gasped as realization struck her face, “No! No! No!”

  Landon paused for moments trying to choose his words properly. “We don’t have mates,” he said under his breath.

  “Yes, you do. Mate, female, bride, spouse, wife, consort...whatever you want to call it. She’s your female, is she not?”

  “I don’t have to answer any questions,” he said wordlessly cursing demons’ abilities as empaths.

  “Your lack of denying it says a lot. If you remember, I recently mated, so I’ll forgive this incident, this one time. You are a lucky man.”

  “You know nothing of my luck,” he said, silently cursing his fate for pairing him with a female from another breed.

  “When do you plan to tell her?” Jenna prodded.

  Landon sized up the ballsy brunette. She wasn’t afraid of much, just like her sister. “I’m not.”

  “What do you mean you are not? Don’t you think she deserves to know?” she asked as the fire in her eyes peaked again.

  “My heart, that is for them to figure out,” Lucas whispered in Jenna’s ear trying to soothe her nerves. “Now, about you guarding her,” Lucas continued. “My men will continue to guard her. If you want to go along, that’s fine. I will warn you, Jenna is extremely overprotective of her sister, as you have just witnessed. I would suggest you don’t hurt her.”

  Landon left Lucas’s office with those last words. What happened to Lucas? The mating must have soothed the demon king’s temper. He’d hoped to get a rise out of the demon, instigate him. He needed a fight to cool his temper. Seems the Elemental had succeeded in calming the once volatile demon. It’d been merely months ago, when he’d grown incensed at the Guardian meeting fearing they would harm her. Now, he was cool and calm using his brains before his explosive nature took over. Damn!

  Chapter 4

  It had been half an hour since Jocelyn parted ways with the annoying alpha werewolf, but she was still irate, stewing in anger as she walked through Central Park.

  Who did he think he was trying to push her around? He may be used to intimidating people because he was an almighty alpha, but she wasn’t a wolf or part of his pack.

  “Ugh!”

  What could she do to get rid of her simmering irritation? She usually got a manicure-pedicure to cure her frustrations, but she didn’t think waiting for her nails to dry would do the trick today. Shopping? It could help some. Thanks to her brother-in-law, Lucas, she had plenty of money to spend.

  He was demon king, which made her sister queen, and they were both filthy rich. After they insisted she move to New York so they could keep her safe, Lucas paid off her lease, all her school loans, and moved all her stuff to his new place. He then proceeded to buy her new furniture and clothes.

  Lucas and Jenna had resided in a different apartment building then, but once they knew Aleta switched to the “dark side,” Lucas decided they needed to move, and their new home, an entire fifteen-story apartment building, was more lavish and luxurious than the last. She had an entire floor to herself with kitchen, living room, and terrace. Her room was thrice the size of her apartment in California, and it connected to an office, not to mention her huge walk-in closet and gigantic bathroom with a hot tub.

  She did have a lot to be thankful for. Lucas and Jenna did everything in their power to make her feel at home, but the truth was she missed her old life.

  Her old life hadn’t been easy. As a kid, she’d gotten herself into sticky situations often, which was why she had been shuffled to ten different foster homes. When she finally turned eighteen, she’d set out to get an education. As soon as it was time to pick her major, only one thing called to her: teaching. She hoped she could help kids like herself, the ones no one else cared about. Between work and school, she still found time to kick back, hang out with friends or acquaintances, and have a couple of drinks or check out the new hotspot in town. Even so, she missed it. She missed being normal.

  In New York, she was an Elemental, a new breed of immortals prophesied to evolve at the turn of the century. Their existence could lead to the salvation or destruction of mankind and immortals alike. It was a lot of pressure, and she didn’t think she could live up to the hype.

  “Joce.” She heard a familiar voice and turned, spotting Cain. She met his blue eyes and he smiled.

  “Have you been stalking me this whole time?”

  “I never stalk; I follow and watch closely,” he jested sensing her troubled emotional state.

  “You saw all that then, huh?”

  He nodded.

  “So you’ve watched me mope around for half an hour?”

  “Yeah. I wanted to give you time,” he replied.

  So sweet, she thought. Over the last three months, she’d grown fond of Cain. Of all of Lucas’s warriors, it was Cain who always tried to console her when she was having a bad day. He always tried cheering her up, let her spill her guts when something bothered her. Even though her happiness or her problems shouldn’t concern him, they did.

  Cain was Lucas’s second-in-command, and they were family. Lucas had rescued Cain when he was a boy and later adopted him. Lucas trusted him the most; therefore, he always put him on Jocelyn guard-duty. Occasionally when Cain wasn’t available, Jacob or Benjamin would step in, but she didn’t trust them like she trusted Cain. Naturally, their friendship evolved.

  “Wanna talk about it?” he asked as he walked alongside her.

  “I don’t know. It was weird, no? He just shows up out of nowhere?”

  “He was kinda right. I did a shitty job,” he said solemnly, and the natural twinkle in his eyes dissipated.

  “No!” Jocelyn shouted. “I will not let him do that to you.” She reached to grab his hand as she positioned herself directly in front of him. “He’s an ass. You have done a great job. How were you supposed to know Aleta even had the power to create such an elaborate illusion? Don’t, Cain.”

  “I should’ve known, Joce,” he said, frustration seeped into his somber tone. “I should’ve been more careful.”

  “Don’t, Cain. This isn’t your fault. Lucas and my sister both know it, too.”

  “No. They were angry with me. I could see it. I failed them.”

  “You never failed them. They are proud of you. Why can’t you see that? You saw right through the illusion. You knew something was wrong. How else would you have known to find me? I doubt anyone would have shown up just in time.”

  He nodded.

  “Landon is an ass,” she said, even more infuriated with the wolf knowing he’d hurt Cain. Honest, sweet, lighthearted Cain. He didn’t deserve to feel like he’d failed over that mutt.

  “He’s just worried about you. We all are. If she had taken you…” His words trailed off into silence.

  She recalled the dreadful memory of her abduction. She’d been forced into a dungeon, handcuffed to a wall, nearly starving. Until Lucas’s brother and leader of the Malums moved her to a room, more lavish yet still a prison. He planned to force her to mate with him. She lived those weeks in misery and fear.

  Immortals completed their mating with the exchange of blood. Once it was done, it couldn’t be undone. Whether she was destined for another or not, if Lucas’s brother had forced her to drink his blood, nothing could have saved her.

  “Joce…” Cain called her wakening her from her thoughts.

  “I know you’re all very worried about me, and even if I bitch and complain constantly about it, I love having so many people care. But Landon is not one of those people. He hasn’t been around for months. He’s just an ass.”

  “This last incident has everyone freaked out. You need to be more careful,” he said as they continued their stroll.

  “Don’t worry about that. I’ve only told Jenna, but I was able to use my power over the wind last night when Aleta attacked me.”

  Cain’s mouth gaped open. “Wow...which means you’ve met your mate,” he said enthusiastically. “Any idea who the lucky bastard is?”

  “Lucky? You mean poor bastard,” she replied and laughed.

  “You don’t truly believe that. Any man would be lucky to have a woman like you.”

  “Thanks, but, no, I have no idea. I’ve only been around the same people for the last three months unless it’s a mortal.” She paused shocking herself that she'd referred to humans as mortals. Being around immortals was starting to affect her. “How would I know?”

  “I have no idea. For immortal males, the recognition is instant. I guess fate is biased toward males,” he jested. “You can ask Jenna though.”

  “Do you think it would be a mortal?”

  “I highly doubt it. I’ve never heard of an immortal mated to a mortal.”

  “Honestly, I don’t even know if I want to know who it is.”

  Cain stopped and faced her. “You have to be kidding?”

  “No. This means that I’m stuck with that person for the rest of my endless life? You know how long that is…it’s forever.”

  He chuckled. “I never thought you were afraid of commitment.”

  “Come on, you did. You know I date, but I never get too close to anyone. I got hurt once. I promised myself it would never happen again. And, hey, as long as I have my powers and can defend myself, I’m fine.”

  “You are very special, Joce,” he said. “Let’s get you home.”

  ****

  After Cain and Jocelyn arrived home, she could feel something amiss. Her sister wasn’t as merry as usual, and Lucas seemed unusually quiet. She briefly wondered if they’d gotten in a fight then pushed the thought out of her mind.

  They hardly ever fought or argued. When they did, it was usually about something meaningless, and they got over it quickly. Still, she had the strangest sensation that whatever was off about them
had nothing to do with them as a couple.

  She headed to her room to freshen up before the Guardian meeting. She showered and dressed quickly. When she reentered her room, she was surprised to find her sister, Jenna, waiting for her, wearing dark wash jeans and a black shirt, her hair hanging loosely around her shoulders.

  “Jenna, you okay?”

  Jenna nodded lightly. “We are advising the Guardians tonight about your powers. I think you should be there,” she said nervously.

  “I figured as much. Is Cain coming too?”

  “Yes,” she responded her uneasiness crawling up Jocelyn’s spine.

  “Seriously, Jenna, what is wrong? You know I can feel what you do.”

  “Just antsy…I remember when we went to tell the Guardians I was one of the new breed. I was really nervous then too.”

  Jocelyn had heard the story before. Aleta, who was still a Guardian at the time, tried to seduce Lucas. Jenna made the ground quake with her fury, and her arms caught fire.

  “Anyway, about your powers, I think we should start training tomorrow.”

  Jocelyn smiled. “I agree. I kinda need to blow off some steam tonight,” she said as anger swarmed through her again just thinking about Landon. “Don’t worry, you and Lucas can send thirty guards with me, and you won’t hear a peep out of me.”

  “Thank God,” Jenna muttered under her breath.

  “Anyway, I don’t think I’d feel comfortable without Cain ten inches from me. Last night was a close call.”

  “Any idea who your mate is?” Jenna prodded.

  “No, and as I just told Cain, I’m not sure I even want to know.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, the thought of being tied down to someone for the rest of my life is overwhelming,” Jocelyn said as she combed her hair. “I’ve been around the same immortals for three months, how am I supposed to know who it is? Cain said something about it being an instant recognition for them, or some crap like that…”

  “He’s right. That’s how Lucas explained it to me.”

  “How did you know?” Jocelyn asked as she turned to face her sister.

  “I... It wasn’t as romantic as it is for them. I just felt this consuming attraction toward Lucas. At first, I thought it was just because he’s ruggedly handsome and strong and he saved me,” she explained. “But then I don’t know how to explain it. It grew to something so much more in just a matter of days. I couldn’t keep myself away from him. All I wanted and needed was to be near him.”

  Jocelyn smiled as her sister recounted the story. There had been a time when she could barely stand to look at Lucas. At first, even glancing at Lucas brought back so many memories of his brother, but just watching the way he gazed at her sister with such admiration and love, it was impossible not to love him too. He loved Jenna more than himself.

  Jocelyn realized Lucas was nothing like his brother, and it didn’t have anything to do with him loving her sister. He was noble, brave, and kind. He was king of demonkind but spent all his time in New York, combating Malums for mankind’s sake. He treated her like his own sister, listened to hours of her bitching for forcing his men to guard her. After she was done with her ranting and raving, he would smile and say, “I do it because I love you.”

  “It sounds pretty romantic to me,” Jocelyn commented, and she smiled at her sister. “Come on, we should go. You have that love-struck-me-silly look.”

  They both laughed.

  ****

  Cain wrapped his arms around Jocelyn as Lucas wrapped his around Jenna, and they materialized outside an old Victorian home outside the city where the vampire king, Giovanni de Greco, resided and where the Guardian meetings were held Friday nights.

  They entered through large double doors and followed one of the vampire king’s servants down a long narrow hallway and into a conference room. Jocelyn’s nerves were already getting the better of her. Attempting to hide it, she fisted the side of Cain’s shirt in her hand.

  When they entered, she noticed Giovanni sitting in the middle of the rectangular shaped table, impeccably dressed; Kellen, king of elves, was to his right. Landon stood at the far end of the room with a young blue-eyed woman with shoulder length dark hair. A prickling jealously instantly churned through Jocelyn, and she felt Jenna’s tension heightening.

  “Welcome, once again to my home,” Giovanni said. “We have two new guests: Jocelyn, the Elemental, Jenna’s sister, and Landon’s sister, Olivia.”

  Sister? she asked herself as her jealously slightly subsided, her right hand still tightly fisted in Cain’s shirt. She glanced at Landon, who nodded, and she noticed yellow swarming his eyes.

  What’s got his panties in a twist now?

  “Lucas,” Giovanni continued. “I believe you have some interesting news to share with us.”

  “I do.” Lucas exchanged a glance with Landon, who appeared more furious as the minutes pass.

  Again, Jocelyn sensed something amiss and that everyone knew but her. Her gut told her it had something to do with Landon. Had Landon gone to see Lucas? Had he berated him just as he had berated her? She wondered. What an ass! Lucas, however, appeared unfazed by Landon’s smoldering gazes. That’s my bro! she cheered silently.

  “We are proud to announce Jocelyn was able to use her powers last night. We will start her training tomorrow. I’m positive she’ll pick it up just as quickly as Jenna did.

  “On to some bad news. You are all aware that Aleta attempted to kidnap Jocelyn early this morning. Luckily, Cain and Clyde found her in time. Kellen assisted us and since he knows more about magic, I’ll have him explain the rest.”

  Chapter 5

  Landon, solely focused on Jocelyn, fumed as Kellen explained how Aleta managed to cast three equally powerful spells and his belief she’d stolen powers from other fairies.

  He watched her proximity to Cain and how her delicate hand held Cain’s shirt for support.

  His body, heart, and mind protested as fury pulsed through him. His face flushed, his temperature spiked as yellow swarmed in his eyes. Irrationally, he wanted to bash the demon’s head in envy. He was lucky to feel her warmth. She should be comforted by her male, not the damned demon. It was his own doing. He’d chosen to forsake her, but the knowledge didn’t make it any easier to withstand.

  Olivia lightly elbowed him in the gut distracting him from his thoughts.

  “What?” he yelled at her rather harshly, Olivia’s face paled. He glanced around the room and noticed everyone’s eyes settled on him, except Jocelyn’s.

  “I asked if any more from your pack are missing.” Giovanni repeated.

  How had he missed that? Right, he was too consumed with Jocelyn and why she was comforted by another man.

  “No,” he snapped. “No harm has come to my pack. The werelions have had two from their pack killed within the last two weeks. I’ve been trying to convince their leader to attend the meetings. He’s hesitant.”

  “All right, so we have agreed to continue to patrol for Malums. Kellen, you mentioned you’d reach out to Aleta’s brother. Giovanni and I will try to find out if any warlocks or witches have disappeared.”

  “Landon, if you could reach out to other shifters and find out if there have been any disappearances or murders within their packs.”

  Landon nodded in agreement.

  As Cain led Jocelyn out of the room, her hand now in his, Landon fought the urge to run after them. His eyes were now fully yellow; his body began to spasm, turning.

  No! he berated himself. Not here. You can’t lose it here.

  Olivia stepped in front of him, blocking his view of Jocelyn as she disappeared from the room. Olivia was fully aware he was fighting his shift. He could only imagine what she thought, but admired her for not commenting in front of the Guardians. She took his hand in hers and squeezed, pulling him forward and outside. Without saying a word, she pulled out the keys and unlocked the car doors.

  He was mildly relieved when he noticed Jocelyn was nowhere in sight although her sweet jasmine fragrance remained. Cain must have dematerialized with her. His mind visualized the blond-haired, blue-eyed, six-foot-five demon holding her close and vanishing with her.

  Then he lost it, lost all semblance of control. He propelled himself in the air and shifted. His clothes tore as he transformed into the magnificent wolf he was born to be. In less than half a second, his muscular body was replaced with that of a seven-foot wolf with large paws and dark brown fur. His eyes were no longer their natural pale blue but an incandescent yellow.