Maybe Fate: A Novel (New Adult Paranormal Romance) (49 page)

She
went to smooth them, but I grabbed her wrists, kissing the insides.
Closing her eyes, she sighed.

This
woman, this amazing woman.

I
loved her, loved Gale Everette. Loved her more than should have been
allowed in one man's lifetime.

And
here I was, blessed with a second.

I
had control, until she leaned down to sink her lips onto my neck.
Her hot breath on my ear, it sent a surge through me.

The
sound of her bra snapping was loud in the room; her gasp even more
so. My hands crawled down her spine, exploring her muscles as they
flexed.

Holding
the hem of her pants, I tensed my arms. Her jeans wouldn't last
long, it would be too easy to rip them down.

Gale
sat up, halting me like she sensed I was on the verge of destroying
the denim. Removing them the rest of the way, she chided me. “Don't
ruin my clothes.”

Chuckling,
I gripped her hips as she straddled me. “Perhaps I'll just
ruin you, then?”

Her
eyes burned like fresh smoke, lips coiling into a sly smile. That
smile became an ecstatic moan the second I rolled my palms up her
stomach.

Caressing
the shape of her breasts as she bent over me, I breathed out hard.
“You're perfect, so perfect it's unfair.”

“
How
is it unfair?” she mumbled, pinkness infecting her skin as she
warmed from her blood outwards.

“
The
rest of the world will never know, is all,” I whispered.

She
bit down on the corner of her mouth. “Not unfair for you,
then.”

“
No,”
I said softly. “Not unfair for me.”

Gale
reached between us, sliding my trousers down my legs. “Not
unfair for me, either.”

I
wanted to reply, but she stole my words away when she eagerly slid
her wetness over the rigidness of my member.

It
was too much, I couldn't wait. To think, I'd almost lost this girl.
That everything about her might have vanished into the void, either
by her death, or my own...

I
understood the willpower, then, that had to have existed to bring me
back.

Burying
myself in her warmth to the hilt, her cries bounced around the
throne room. Together, we rose like a wave, meeting each other,
harmonized.

The
sweltering noise of our panting, our grunts, it became all we could
hear.

My
hands were crushing her to me, rough enough I was sure she'd have
marks on her. If she minded, there was no hint.

This
time, the boiling energy that lived inside of Gale didn't call to me
in a way that seemed dangerous. Idly, as my pulsing hit a peak and I
arched into her lovely form with gusto, I wondered what had changed.

What
was different about her?

Above
me, Gale pressed her brow-bone into mine. Her chest fluttered, heart
racing to keep up with her body's demands.

Every
part of her seemed to embrace me, squeezing me until I groaned and
gave out.

Running
my palms down her shoulder blades, I felt the slickness of her
sweat. Together we breathed, relaxing in our very existence.

Kissing
the side of her neck, I felt her stir. Propping herself over me,
Gale smiled into my face with a comfortable haze. “I love you,
Nethiun. I really, honestly do.”

“
I
know,” I answered, cupping the back of her neck. Pressing my
lips to her warm temple, I smiled against her skin. “I love
you, too.”

I
wanted to lie there forever, but she was the first to disengage.
Gale slid off of me, standing on still shaking legs.

Watching
her from my vantage point, I lifted an eyebrow. “What are you
doing?”

She
glanced down at me, blushing as she understood the view I had.
Tugging on her clothes, she cast her eyes around the room curiously.
“There are a few things I need to do, is all.”

Redressing
easily, I stood up beside her. “Oh? And what must a god do, I
wonder?”

The
way she stared at me, it spiked my guilt. “I'm not a god,
Nethiun.”

“
Forgive
me, but what should I call you, if not that? Gale,” I said
gently, reaching out to take her hands. “You've obtained the
power of every twaelin, and somehow the energy of your human
emotion, your very essence, has allowed you to rewrite the tenets
that built my world. You can do anything you want with it.”

Gale
offered me a weak smile. “I know. And I'm going to.”

Unsure
what she meant, I didn't fight as she pulled away. Gale wandered
past the throne, considering it briefly. I felt an awful sensation,
imagining her sitting there like my Mistress once had.

Luckily,
she kept going, heading for the exit. In wonder, I trailed after her
until we were both standing outside on the twisted front steps.

Looking
upwards, Gale considered the sky. It made me think that she was
contemplating the actuality of where we were. “Gale? What are
you going to do?”

“
I
don't want this power for myself,” she said grimly. “This
isn't for me, none of this. I don't want to be a god or a twaelin.
I'm going to get rid of it. I'm going to fix things.”

My
eyes, cold as snow, opened to their limit. “You're going to do
what?”

Half-turning
towards me, she put on a tender smile that made me throb with
trepidation. “Just watch, Nethiun. Watch me change fate some
more.”

Her
hands lifted, her eyes closed. As I looked on with disbelief, Gale
glowed like the dawning of a new sun. The energy within her clawed
at me, came to life as she manipulated it.

That
was the difference
,
I realized.
Gale
understands what she can do, she can finally control it.

Her
hair flew around, a sea of bright rubies. She stood out on the
background of muted grey, lighting up the world with fire.

Shielding
my eyes, I stared at the vision of the woman I loved. Watched her
channeling energy with only her desire to guide her.

I
was afraid, in that moment. There was a tingling warning in my brain
that she might lose control, destroying herself and making
everything pointless.

My
worries abated in the sudden, abrupt flash of that searing vanilla
energy. It hit everything, me included, soaking in with a wondrous
warmth.

The
power that came from Gale—
was
Gale—traveled
through my body, passing beyond.
She's
getting rid of it, where is it going?

Suddenly
I could see nothing, my ears deaf as a roar like the ocean filled
them. The scent of brine came next.

Opening
my eyes hesitantly, lowering my arms, I looked out upon the gentle
shore line. We both stood on the sand, the sky luminous with the
purple of sunrise.

Turning
my head, I stared in awe at Gale.

What
happened?
“Gale?”

Her
eyes were stuck firmly on the waves; unblinking, far away.

“
Gale?”
I asked again, earnestly.

Like
waking from a dream, the woman I loved looked over at me. The
understanding on her face left me astonished. “What did you
do?” I whispered.

“
Look,”
she said calmly. Pointing over my shoulder, she gestured for me to
turn. I twisted, gazing out on the pale sand.

They
were hard to miss, the two of them.

One
I knew, his long black hair waving in the wind as he sat on the
ground. He wore an expression of amazement, blue eyes not noticing
me.

The
other I had little knowledge of, yet seeing him, I instantly knew
who he was. His long red hair, those grey eyes, that confident
stance...

Ethlyn,
and the Duke of Creation.

When
I gaped back at the girl beside me, she looked truly pleased. “Maybe
this time, they'll have better luck with a new life,” she
whispered.

“
That's
the Duke of Creation.” I didn't know what else to say.

Nodding,
Gale tucked her hair behind her ear. “I know. He's my father.”

Shaking
my head very slowly, I glanced back at the pair for a long moment.
“Do you know what this means?”

“
I
do,” she said. “I brought them back with my energy. I'm
their source, now. Theirs, and yours,” she added, drawing my
attention back to her with her emotional tone.

We
looked at each other, as if it were the first time we had met all
over again. “Are you willing to have that responsibility?”

“
There
wasn't any other choice.” Her eyebrows leveled at me, daring
me to challenge her. To challenge the decision a mortal, human girl
had made to revive us three, to give us second chances.

A
decision based purely on her aching heart.

I
wrapped my arms around her, hugging her close. Inhaling the scent of
her hair, we stood with the clapping rhythm of the ocean waves at
our side.

“
Will
you expect me to call you Mistress?” I asked, my smile brazen.

Gale
scowled, before allowing herself to relax and laugh. “I'd
never want that.”

“
Good.
I'm looking forward to being free of such hindrances.”

“
You'll
still have to answer to me in a different way,” she teased.

Grinning
wide, I held her chin, planting a long kiss on her decadent lips.
Leaning away, I enjoyed the fog glimmering in her expression. “I'm
rather positive I'll relish the responsibilities of being in love,
Gale.”

I
knew I meant it, and so did she.

Gale Everette

Sitting
on the bench, I smiled down at the birds that skipped across the
ground. They gobbled the bread, heads bobbing in quick bursts.

It
felt... good. Just sitting there, wrapped in a thick jacket with the
cold November breeze hitting me, it all felt so good.

After
everything that had happened when I'd returned to campus a few days
back, I craved a moment of peace. I'd known it was going to be a
giant cluster-ball when everyone saw me, but...

I
still wasn't prepared for how angry they all were.

Becky
had been the worst of all. She'd taken one look at me when I walked
into the dorm, then broken into tears. That was the easy part,
comforting her in her moment of disbelief.