Chapter Eighteen

He flew them back to Elric's place. There was more cloud cover and a large amount of land to come down on. Gargoyles could be invisible as needed, but sometimes, if someone looked in the right spot, they could see something shimmering in the air, so they had to be careful. He was still reeling from the amount of power he had wielded. Unlike the past, where his attack had felt out of control, toxic, terrible. Today he felt strong, powerful, justified.

He supposed both side of him had a purpose, as long as they were used correctly. There was the healing side, warm and loving and helpful. But if anyone messed with his mate, or his people or shifters, there was the other side that could rain, literally, righteous justice on the bad guys. Hopefully, he would keep learning to understand both. Elena at least seemed to accept both side of him. Though they had fought, she hadn't said anything about it since he had shown up to rescue her.

As they landed, Ann came running out on the lawn, her dark auburn hair flowing out behind her. "Where's Elric?"

"He's fine," Dmitrei told her as he gave her a quick hug to comfort her. "He will be back soon. He's staying back to help with clean-up.

"Elric?" Elena asked.

"The dark gargoyle you saw," Dmitrei replied.

Elena looked from Ann to Dmitrei, then it clicked. "Elric from the shelter? He's a gargoyle, too?"

Ann walked forward and folded Elena into her arms, "Welcome to the family."

Elena blinked a few times before her misty gray eyes grew warm and she wrapped her arms around Ann, "Thanks for having me."

Ann lead the way back inside, eyeing Dmitrei, who looked a little worse for wear after all the fighting. There were black smudges all over his skin and tears in his clothing. "You two go ahead and clean up. I'll go make something to eat," Ann said, then grinned at Elena. "And congrats on mating."

Elena'a expression dropped, shuttering to hide her feelings, but she nodded, "Thank you."

Dmitrei took his mate by the hand and lead her up to his bedroom, not stopping until they were in and he could close the door. He sat on the bed with a huff and pulled her to stand between his legs. "Finally."

She looked down at him, her long lashes sultry over her gray eyes, "So, are we going to talk, or should I just thank you for saving me and call it a day?"

"We should talk," he said. "I didn't explain things well."

She kept his hand in hers and sat next to him on the bed. Outside the window rain began to fall. Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion, "That's odd."

He grinned, "Something I like to do. It will probably be raining a lot since I haven't been able to use it in a long time."

She stared in disbelief, "You can make it rain? What else can you do?"

"Mostly that and healing," he answered her as he leaned back. "Then I have tactical stuff I can do with my ice."

"Ah, I guess I'll figure it out as we go. It's all fine with me."

"Elena, about me killing people. I need to talk to you about it."

"Sure. But I already figured out I shouldn't have let Douchebag get in my head. I should have known you needed more time to defend yourself, given your prosperity to beat yourself up."

"It happened before I went to sleep," he said, trying to rush and get it out before he lost his nerve. "A village was destroyed. Not just any village, one full of people I loved. I don't think I even let myself acknowledge how much I love them. I told myself it was just an experiment. To see if gargoyles could intervene with humans in good ways. Ways that made a difference."

She listened quietly, attentive to his every word. It only made him love her even more.

"One day, I was flying back to see if their crops had enough water, to see if anyone was sick, and everything was ruined. Everything burned to the ground. Everyone dead."

Her jaw dropped, "What?"

"Murdered. Children. Women. Innocent people." He ran his fingers through his hair as she placed a hand on his leg, instantly soothing him. "I went into a rage. I guess that's when I woke the icy side of me. I found the attackers. I killed them. I didn't hesitate. There was too much rage. It was so fast. When it was over, I couldn't take it."

"But they were murderers," she said, rubbing his thigh.

"I know, but I don't like killing. Elric has helped me understand it may happen, even in this new world where things are suppose to be safer. I get that now. If I want to intervene, I have to use my strength in multiple ways, but I will always prefer to be a healer."

"I'm sorry you went through that," she said quietly, reaching over to take his hand. "And I'm sorry I judged you. I guess, ever since you came into my life, it has felt too good to be true. If you were some kind of monster, I guess it would have made more sense why you were with me."

He tilted her chin up so he could look into her metallic eyes. "Stop it. You're too good for me. You're the reason I wanted to be better." He released her with a sigh, looking back at the window where the rain was abating. "Before that, I just wanted to die. After I killed those people, I was restless. Angry. I fought other humans. Other gargoyles. I just sort of lost that other part of me. And then I was captured and put on ice. I didn't even mind when I knew it was going to happen. And when I woke up, I was angry. What was the point?" He put his arm around her, "But then I met you, struggling with your pain, putting it aside to help others, and you made me want to wake that other side of me again. You made me want to heal and care and love again. You made it easy to love you."

"I can't believe you healed me. And Sebastian. He looks great."

"Yeah. Wherever we live, I hope we can bring him," he said.

"Well, I did say if he ever got better, he was yours," she reminded him.

"Are you okay with that?"

"He's probably still getting acquainted with my kitties, but I'm sure they'll work it out," she said. "There are a lot of things to work out, but it's worth it."

"So, you forgive me? For mating you? For keeping secrets?" he asked.

"Of course, and you forgive me for going off?"

"Nothing to forgive," he said, looking at his ring on her finger. "I was selfish for pushing you into that without fully explaining. I was just caught up in the emotion of it."

"I understand," she said.

They just sat there for a moment, resting, enjoying the warmth, and listening to the barely pattering rain outside the window. Then, without asking, he leaned her back onto the bed and went with her, kissing her passionately. She stroked his hair, and he wrapped his fist around some of hers, keeping her close. She moaned as he tilted her head back and kissed her neck, licking his way to her collarbone, grazing the sensitive skin above her breasts.

"You're mine," he said, grabbing her hands and pinning them above her head. "Say it."

"I'm yours," she said confidently, her silver eyes shining up at him. "I have been from the moment I met you."

He grinned, flashing his sharp fangs and lowered himself over her.

*************************

Making love to him was different this time.

Each time Elena felt his touch, it was unique. She hoped there would be a million days like this, experiencing new ways of loving each other's bodies. Today he was slow and languorous, taking his time to explore with his tongue as his hands traveled her body. He had let her hands go the moment she said she was his.

It felt so right saying it. It was easy giving in to him.

Even after seeing the results of his power in the destroyed compound where she had been held, she had felt only awe for him. And now that she knew more about what he had been through, she loved him even more.

"You're everything," he told her. "You're my entire world."

She laughed and arched as he placed more kisses on her neck and behind her ear, making her shiver deliciously. "I don't even know what to say to that."

"Say you are mine. I will never hear it enough. Say you will never let anyone do this but me."

"I'm yours," she murmured into his ear, enjoying the way his body tensed as her breath brushed his skin. "No one but you will ever do this with me."

He sighed in satisfaction and went back to kissing her neck, his hands slowly removing her shirt as he did. First peeling off the hoodie as she helped get her hands out of it, then sliding off the tank top beneath. She sat up and unhooked her bra, throwing it on the carpet, as he pulled his shirt over his head, revealing magnificent abs.

"So hot," she sighed.

He wrapped them up together, chest to warm chest, and ran his hands over her shoulders and arms as he kissed her again, just under her ear, then he took her earlobe between his lips, gently biting down. She arched and gasped, and he quickly pulled off her pants and then raised a hand. He flicked out a dark-blue claw, and she saw the light glint off of it for a split second before he hooked it around her panties and tore them right off.

"I've been wanting to do that," he said. "But I couldn't until you knew what I was."

"Pervert," she muttered.

"Yes," he said, closing his lips around one of her nipples. "But only for you."

"Perfect," she said, letting out a moan as he moved to her other breast, licking and nibbling gently. His hands were on her thighs, kneading the soft flesh there as tension built inside her. She spread her legs for him, blissfully lost in his touch. There was no one she wanted this way, and she wanted him badly.

He looked down at her, blue eyes searing her with heat, his cheeks smudged, blond hair damp and mussed. He stood up from the bed, removing his clothes. The jeans went first, hitting the floor with a light plop, then the boxer briefs that barely contained his full size. He was on the bed with her once more, naked, nothing between them, just as they had been before, but there was a different meaning now. The hear and passion were still there, but they were accompanied by a sense of forever. This was their promise, unspoken and physical. They were partners, always working together to be the best they could be for each other.

And help the world as well.

She adored knowing he would be able to heal others the way he healed her. She loved there was a tough side to him, one he was coming to accept and control. He was powerful, with that power came heavy burdens, and she vowed to be by his side to watch him explore all his gifts could do for the world.

He lifted his head, his eyes soft. "I wasn't trying to read your thoughts, but they're so sweet." He rested his palm against her cheek, grazing her skin with his thumb. "I'm going to help you, too. I'm going to take you to do all you ever dreamed, before you were injured. Anything in general. I have my duties in this world, but nothing comes before you. You're the only reason I'm here."

She flushed, unable to fathom that she made such a difference for him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close and looking down his body at every delicious inch of flesh. His wide chest, the blond hairs running over gorgeous, ran abs. The lines at each hip which pointed down, directly to the part of him she desperately longed to feel within her.

She wriggled against him, moist and ready. He smiled, spreading her legs farther apart, kneeling between her soft thighs. In one smooth motion he was in and she wrapped her legs around him to trap him. Not that she needed to. She knew from the tension in his body, they were both in heaven. She held her breath and let it out slowly as her body adjusted to the searing heat within her, so hard and filling. Every nerve lit up as though on fire, ready to go. He moved, his eyes closing in effort as he got them started. Things were smoother, more comfortable, as they found their rhythm, but it no less heated or passionate.

His fiery blue eyes met hers, and she felt truly beautiful as she saw herself reflected in his gaze. She never expected to be loved like this, but now that she had, she would never let go.

Pressure built inside her, raising her higher and higher. She tucked her head into his shoulder, holding on tight, ready to fall. As she tipped over the precipice into intense, resounding pleasure, he followed her. Her name leaving his lips as he held her tight, jerking inside her, sending more sensations through her as he tensed and grew somehow harder.

"Dmitrei," she uttered, like an oath as she finally finished feeling completely sated. Her body radiated pleasure, as though she had been soaked in it.

He grinned and leaned over her, putting them nose to nose as he rested on his forearms. "Yes, love?"

She kissed him hard, sliding her tongue in to mean with his, enjoying having him inside her, at least for a few moments longer. "I love you. I really do."

He rubbed his nose against hers, "I love you, too."

He rolled over into his side, curling up alongside her, hiding her in his arms, pressing kissed to the back of her neck. She could feel his huge body behind her and free the sheets around them both. Then she rolled over to face him.

"So," she said softly, "tell me all about gargoyles."

Dmitrei grinned and happily obliged.