Darius Bonus Chapter #2
“Only when Darius does it,” he shrugged. “He has that whole dominant, ‘shove me around the bedroom’ vibe going, and sometimes I think he might even be able to do it to me if the mood took him.”
“ I could shove you around the bedroom if the mood took me,” Caleb said, and Seth barked a laugh, his attention stolen by the turn in the conversation.
“Nah, Cal. You’re pretty and all, but you don’t scream ‘dominant daddy’ to me the same way that Dari-” Caleb shot towards Seth so fast that I lost the movement in a blink, the two of them crashing back against the table where several of the fake gifts were sent flying.
Cal pushed Seth down beneath him, one hand locked around his throat and his fangs bared as he leaned over him, their bodies flush with one another.
“Call me pretty again,” Caleb growled while Seth blinked up at him in surprise.
“So fucking pretty,” Seth breathed, his chest rising heavily as Caleb pinned him down on the table.
Max released a low whistle of amusement, and I arched a brow at the two of them, their gazes locked with an intensity that made the air surrounding us crackle.
Caleb leaned in slowly, and Seth blinked rapidly as the space between their mouths was reduced to almost nothing.
“Good pup,” Caleb said roughly before shooting away again so fast that I didn’t even see his ass hit the chair beside me and he simply appeared to have been sitting there lounging in it like he owned the world the entire time.
Seth whimpered in frustration as he pushed himself upright once more, the camera flashes going off too late to catch Caleb up to anything that could even be half considered scandalous.
I couldn’t help but grin at him as he sat there looking smug as fuck with himself, and he inclined his head to me in reply, our issues over Roxanya Vega put aside for the indisputable reality that our bond was utterly impenetrable at its core.
“Is that my gift then?” Seth asked as he not-so-subtly rearranged his cock. “The four of us are finally going to give in to this raging masculine sexuality that burns so hot between us and fuck like the beasts we are all night long in a four-way to end all four-ways?”
“Well, that was going to be my choice of gift before I spotted the Snausages and knew you’d much prefer-”
Seth tackled me before I could finish that sentence, his weight slamming into me so solidly that my chair was knocked over and we went crashing to the ground with the thing splintering beneath our combined weight.
I cursed him as he managed to get a few decent punches into my ribs, a solid crack echoing through my chest from the impact, then swung my forehead into the bridge of his nose to force him back.
Seth barked a raucous laugh as his blood splattered my shirt, and we rolled across the floor as we continued to scrap like a pair of drunk mortals in a back alley.
Max and Caleb began taking bets while Seth’s mom called out at him to go for the jugular from across the room.
One glance towards our parents let me know that Father was watching with quiet interest, and my amusement plummeted as I realised this would be another thing he’d judge me on.
A simple game with my best friend becoming a pass or fail situation which would see me having a private discussion with him later.
Father arched a single brow, and I knew what he wanted.
He could tell I was holding back, knew there was a line I wouldn’t cross with the other Heirs, and he wanted me to step right over it to prove what I could do.
No doubt that would be the best Christmas gift I could give him – a headline stating my victory in a scrap with my friend, an insinuation that I might be the strongest of the four Heirs.
It was petty, and I knew I’d suffer for it, but as I gave my focus back to the brawl with Seth, I ended up on my back beneath him and failed to block a blow from his fist straight to my jaw.
My head cracked back against the floor, momentarily dazing me, and Seth howled his victory before thrusting his hand into my pocket and snatching the small box straight out of it.
I cursed as I shoved to my feet, swiping a hand over my face and using my water magic to take all the blood from my skin and clothes before depositing it in a glass I crafted out of ice beside Caleb.
“I knew it!” Seth crowed as he held the little grey box up above his head, and my stomach dropped as he waved it around victoriously.
I could feel my father’s eyes on my back, his fury burning through my spine, but I ignored him.
I didn’t give a fuck about winning or losing some nothing scrap with Seth, and I wasn’t going to beat the shit out of him in front of the press just to save my own ass from Father’s disappointment.
Besides, I had bigger concerns as my gaze fixed on that fucking box Seth had snatched from me.
“That’s not for you,” I called out firmly, but Seth, being Seth, totally ignored me and sprinted for the door instead of giving the damn thing back.
I cursed him as I took chase, Caleb and Max hooting and catcalling us as they followed, the press snapping endless photos the entire time.
We ran out into the vaulted hallway, and I snarled a warning at Seth as he started tugging at the box, trying to rip it open despite my continued insistence that it wasn’t for him.
I chased after him as fast as I could, and he howled at the game, sprinting away from me with the box held high in his fist.
I put on a burst of speed and slammed into him at last, throwing him back against a heavy wooden door and pinning him with my forearm against his throat as I reached for the box in his fist.
But before I could snatch it, Caleb shot past us and stole it for himself.
“Give it to me,” I demanded, smoke rolling between my teeth as I whirled on him instead, my eyes flashing into reptilian slits as my temper built and the Dragon in me stirred. “I’m not fucking around. That isn’t for any of you assholes, and I want it back.”
“By the stars, Darius, who shit in your cornflakes this morning? It’s Christmas day – the one day of the year when we steal a little bit of mortal madness and celebrate the winter solstice with gross consumerism, coupled with an indecent amount of pressure, to show love to people who we may or may not secretly think are pieces of shit just because we share blood with them.
It’s special,” Caleb teased, always the least likely to back down to me, but I wasn’t in the mood for his crap right now, and as my gaze darted to the little box he now held, I could see he knew it too. “Well, now I really am curious.”
“In here, Cal, you can help me open it!” Seth called, throwing open the door behind him and running into the dark space.
Caleb shot in after him, and a snarl erupted from my throat as I moved to take chase.
Max’s hand landed on my arm, his Siren gifts pushing against my mental barriers as he offered to calm me, and I gritted my teeth, allowing it purely because I knew that losing my shit would only equal what I was trying to prevent.
If I went head-to-head with Caleb and tried to force him to do what I wanted, he’d open the fucking box just to prove he didn’t bow to me. Asshole.
“You really care that much about some trinket in a box?” Max asked me curiously, and I knew I was letting my emotions slip past my defences if he could tell how much it was bothering me.
“No,” I grunted. “It’s not…it doesn’t mean anything. I just don’t want anyone thinking it does.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Max asked, but I’d already slammed my mental walls back up like a fortress around my mind, and I strode away from him as I stalked after Seth and Caleb into the dark.
Lights blazed to life, and I paused as I realised where we were, the throne sitting right in the heart of the enormous room, the black stone Hydra heads which adorned it seeming to stare at the four of us indignantly, like Hail Vega himself had seen who had just set foot in his throne room.
“Well, fuck me, she’s a pretty chair,” Seth sighed, the box momentarily forgotten as he and Caleb looked up at the imposing throne like a pair of naughty school kids caught where they shouldn’t be.
I strode up to them, ignoring the throne in favour of claiming my prize. I tugged the envelope which held Seth’s real present from my back pocket before slapping it against his chest and snatching the box from Caleb.
Caleb bared his fangs, slamming into me so fast that I dropped the cursed box, the damn thing skittering away across the floor while I was distracted by having to fight off a Vampire who seemed inclined to bite me for nothing more than wanting a bit of fucking privacy.
“What’s the big deal about some Christmas present?” Caleb asked, his palms slamming into my chest with the force of his gifts so that I was knocked back a step.
“It’s for your mom,” I lied, shoving him in return. “I just didn’t want you crying about me one-upping whatever flashy bullshit thing you bought her with your pocket money.”
“Fuck you. My mom loves flashy bullshit,” Caleb laughed, and I snorted.
“Ohmastars!” Seth cooed loudly as he finally opened his gift from me and read the information on the tickets. “Two nights in a luxury mountain cabin and a moonlight hot air balloon trip for four! How will I ever choose who to bring with me??”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Caleb demanded, whirling on him and forgetting about me. “You’re taking the three of us, asshole.”
“Right, yeah, probably,” Seth began. “But I do have other friends, you know. Some of whom like the moon waaaay more than you guys. And if I took my pack, we could have a balloon orgy right up by the moon-”
“Someone is going to be piloting the thing, are you planning on them joining in with your orgy or just making them watch?” Caleb asked.
“That depends,” Seth mused.
“On?”
“Are they hot?”