Bear Reign (Alpha Guardians Book 7) (8 page)

“
A
ll right
. I think I need to retire for the night,” Mere Marie said with a regretful sigh. “After almost two days of celebrations, I’m tapped out. I’m too old for this.”

They were all gathered in the kitchen, sipping St. Germain punch and swapping almost-the-end-of-the-world stories. Rhys and Gabriel both snorted, but Mere Marie just pointed to baby Marie, who was sleeping soundly on Cassie’s shoulder.

“She’s got the right idea,” Mere Marie said, giving the baby a fond pat on the back.

“Tomorrow, we should talk business,” Aeric said, stretching and setting his champagne flute aside. “Now that we’ve defeated our two biggest enemies, I’d like to imagine that the Guardians become sort of peacekeepers… instead of constantly trying to stop an apocalypse.”

Mere Marie nodded.

“The Manor belongs to the Guardians and their families,” she said, smiling at the sleeping baby again. “I hope as many of you stay here as possible, permanently.”

“There’s time to work all that out,” Rhys said, emptying the last of his drink in a single sip.

“Actually… on that front, we have some news,” Kira spoke up. “Now that things are calmer, Asher and I are going to take off for a while. Travel, see the world. We have a lot of catching up to do.”

She reached down and took Asher’s hand, and the adoring glance he gave Kira was so sweet it was nearly sickening. He kissed the top of her head and beamed at her, oblivious to all else.

“Well, as Rhys said. All things we can talk about tomorrow. For now, I think a good night’s rest sounds great,” Mere Marie said.

After a round of
goodnights
, she headed upstairs and got into her nightgown. She let down her long white hair and sat on the side of her bed, then nearly fainted with fright. The candles flickered, some of them going out.

The room turned chilly.

And there he was. Standing in the middle of her bedchamber, ghostly but all too present, was Le Medcin.

“Monsieur,” she said, dipping her head in a respectful gesture and pressing her hand to her pounding heart. “You scared me.”

He wore his usual finely-made but ancient-looking suit, the dove gray material making his ebony skin look even darker. Just looking at him fascinated and repulsed her, such was his power.

“You have done very well, Marie,” he said, his deep voice spreading a chill of gooseflesh up her arms.

“Thank you, Monsieur.” She waited, knowing he must be here for a reason.

“Your Guardians have been very successful, much more so than I anticipated. Still…” he paused for a moment. “The human world is in a very dangerous position. The war between Heaven and Hell, good and evil… The tide is turning, and not in our favor.”

She was surprised to hear Le Medcin refer to himself as being on the side of good. Or any side, really… until this moment, she’d considered him to be a truly neutral force. The referee between good and evil, one might say.

“I see,” was all she could think to say.

“You will need to put your affairs in order,” he said, changing the topic. “In twenty four hours, you will meet your new charges.”

“I— what?” She asked, confused.

“Come,” he said, beckoning her over to the broad scrying mirror in the corner of her bedroom. Pressing a single ghostly finger to the mirror’s surface, he caused it to ripple and shift, forming an image.

The angle of their view was odd, but after a moment it righted itself. Thick black steel bars formed a cage and obscured part of what she could see, but the occupants of the prison were clear as day.

Three hulking, muscular men. Covered in tattoos, fierce expressions of hatred on their faces. They stood, arms crossed, staring straight at Mere Marie as if they somehow knew she was watching.

Most extraordinary of all, each of the three men had a set of glorious wings, rising high above their heads.

“Angels,” Mere Marie whispered, crossing herself without thought.

“Fallen angels,” Le Medcin corrected her with a sigh. “These three have been… troublesome. We need someone to oversee them in the coming days. It is believed that they will be a key part of the forces of good, that which protects the human realm and keeps Lucifer himself from walking the Earth, taking dominion over each living soul in the world.”

Mere Marie’s mouth opened and closed again. She was rarely without words, but this… this was something else.

“The Devil is out there, Marie. And he’s a lot bigger and meaner and smarter than the forces you’ve battled here. These three warriors I’m giving you… they would have made great Guardians, but now we need them for a higher purpose. Just like we need you for a higher purpose. Prepare yourself.”

“But why now?” She couldn’t help but ask.

Le Medcin watched her for a silent beat, seeming to consider how much to tell her.

“I cannot prove it, but Hell is tipping the scales somehow. We cannot allow them to continue. They will decimate the world, enslave all humans and Kith, rain fire from the skies.”

“I… okay,” was all she got out before he was talking again.

“One full day from now, I will summon you. Pack light, bring what you need.”

He pressed a cream-colored business card into her hands, and she tried not to shudder at the icy touch of his flesh against hers. Then he was gone, vanished like the apparition he was.

She stared down at the card she clutched with shaking fingers.

“Les Mercenaires,” she read aloud.

It sounded familiar….

Cairn’s soft purr filled the room as he slipped in to twine around her feet. The black cat sat at her feet, looking up at her with his luminous eyes.

“Are you all right?” He asked softly.

“Start packing up all the important books,” she told her familiar. “We leave tomorrow night.”

“For how long?” He asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Where are we going?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well what do you know?”

She glanced down at the cat, a cool smile on her lips.

“I think our lives are about to get very interesting,” she said, shrugging.

With that, Mere Marie turned and began preparing herself to meet her first fallen angel.

F
ire crackling
and warming her skin, moonlight pouring in the windows and casting shadows on the floor, handsome Harlan staring at her with more desire than she’d ever seen in her whole life…

Penny couldn’t think to resist.

Raising her hand, she beckoned to him. She longed for him, longed to comfort and caress him, learn the nuances of his incredible body and the flaws of his heart. Something in her called out for Harlan, wanted him so badly it nearly hurt.

Harlan sunk to his knees, the thin white sheet around his waist threatening to come loose. Penny stared at him, swiping her tongue over her lower lip, anticipation simmering low in her body. When he reached out and tugged at the lower hem of her t-shirt, then pulled it up over her head, Penny’s heart began to pound.

Without speaking, Harlan stripped Penny’s jeans off. Eyes intent on Penny’s face, he unhooked her bra and slid it off, baring her breasts to the firelight. With each breath, her breasts rose and fell, drawing Harlan’s attention.

“Beautiful,” he said, reaching out to cradle one round globe, brushing his thumb over her dusky nipple. He paused, then withdrew his touch. “Penny…”

He seemed uncertain how to ask her permission. Penny rose on her knees and leaned forward, cupping his jaw and pressing her lips to his. He met her with a groan, his lips and tongue seeking hers, stoking the rising flames of her desire.

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ivian is an erotic romance writer
, author of the Alpha Guardians, Winter Pass Wolves, Red Lodge Bears, Werewolf’s Harem, and Louisiana Shifters series.

Vivian has been an autodidact from a young age, and to this day she'll read anything she can get her hands on - back of the cereal box, billboards, whatever. When she's not reading or writing romantic stories, Vivian likes making drinks from her Trader Vic's cocktail recipe book, snuggling her badly behaved dog, and drinking great coffee on rainy wraparound porches in New Orleans.

Vivian really enjoys her work, and is always excited to see what's in store next for her beloved characters.

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