Chapter Twenty-Five
Twenty-Five
Pythor
Codie sighed as he snuggled into my side, and I pressed a kiss into his soft hair, breathing in the scent of his fruity shampoo and the underlying sweet scent of him.
"I'm glad you're okay," he murmured, and I gave him a squeeze.
"Mammon had already left when we got there. I was never in any danger," I assured him, and he hummed.
After returning home, we'd just cuddled on the couch with a movie playing that I didn't think either of us had watched. Then we'd had an early dinner before retreating to bed, both of us far too tired after everything that'd happened today.
"I feel... lighter. Is that strange?"
"Not at all. It's perfectly understandable."
Codie tilted his head up so he could look at me, his chin pressed against my forearm, and I smiled at him, brushing my fingers over his cheek.
"I feel like I can breathe properly for the first time in months. I know this won't fix everything, that I'll still need to work on myself, on getting my life back, but I'm not... I'm not scared anymore. I don't feel like they'll jump out of a corner the moment I step outside."
I was glad I could do that, glad I could make him feel safer.
"I—" The buzz of my phone cut me off, but since Maximus had promised to update me, I grabbed it off the nightstand, giving Codie an apologetic look that he waved off.
Maximus: This note was left on one of the bodies, and I have a feeling it's for you.
Below the message was the picture of a note written in Mammon's familiar scrawl, and the words made me flinch.
"What's wrong?" Codie asked, leaning up to peer at my screen so he could read, "‘I hope your mate is okay.’ Wait. Is that meant for you?"
I nodded, then clicked the phone off. How had Mammon known about Codie? Did that mean he was the one who'd sent that bastard? Why? He would've known I'd take care of him, that I wouldn't let him hurt my Codie. What had he been trying to accomplish?
"He wanted to distract you." Codie came to the conclusion at the same time I did, and I grunted.
"It seems like it," I said after a moment, and Codie hummed thoughtfully.
"So he distracted you, then killed those witches that you said were not nice people, and stole their book full of dark magic?"
"Yeah. I don't get the witches part either. They would've made great allies for whatever he's cooking up, but instead he murdered them. I don't know much about witchcraft, but the spell they'd been working on looked dangerous, which tells me they were probably pretty powerful."
"And yet he chose to kill them rather than work with them. Are you sure he's a bad guy?" Codie asked, and I honestly couldn't answer.
While every demon since the first one who went dark knew it was a possibility, none of us ever thought our friends were capable of it.
It happened slowly, and while there was some darkness to all our souls—anyone who'd worked in Underworld for any length of time had it—none of us had thought it was enough to push us over to the dark side.
At least, not until it happened to Mammon.
"I wish he wasn't," I settled on saying, and Codie made a sympathetic sound as he hugged me tighter. How had this gone from me comforting him to the other way around?
"I can't exactly relate to you, but I know that if Nessa woke up tomorrow and started doing evil shit, it would break my heart. Especially if I had to be the one to stop her."
"Yeah," I murmured, then shook my head. "Let's not talk about this anymore. There's no point in debating over this. We'll catch him and the dark souls, sooner or later."
"I'm sure you will," Codie agreed, and I kissed his forehead, making him smile.
He reached up and pressed his lips to mine, and for a few blissful moments, I lost myself in him.
He was so warm and sweet and gentle, and I loved how good he felt in my arms. He was the most precious person in my world, and I wanted to treasure every moment I spent with him, especially when it was just the two of us.
Hella grumbled sleepily from her spot at our feet, as if reminding me that we weren't, in fact, alone.
I smiled against Codie's lips, then pulled back so he could breathe, and he watched me with dark eyes as he sucked in a breath, his cheeks flushed beautifully.
"What?" he asked, reaching up to touch his cheek. "Is there something on my face?"
I stopped myself before I could say something ridiculously sappy, and shook my head. "You're pretty."
He blinked, and his blush intensified, which made me smile.
"Shut up," he mumbled, his eyes flickering away to land on my chest, and I grinned.
"I didn't mean to embarrass you. You are beautiful, though. The most beautiful person I've ever seen."
"I think you might be a little biased."
"So? Doesn't make you any less pretty."
"Stop calling me pretty!" he whined, making me laugh.
"What should I call you then?"
"Literally anything else would be better," he grumbled, and of course, I took that as a challenge.
"Mesmerizing?"
"No."
"Exquisite?"
"No!"
"Ravishing?"
"Ugh, no."
"Pulchritudinous?"
Codie gave me a look so full of disbelief that I laughed. "Is that even a word?"
"It sure is. You can look it up."
Shaking his head, he pointed his index finger at me. "You can call me Codie, and that's it."
"Oh. So you didn't like it when I called you 'sweetheart?'" I asked, and he scowled.
"Okay, Codie and sweetheart, but that's it."
"What about 'my mate?'" I teased, and he narrowed his eyes at me. I was glad to see him being playful, especially after the day we'd had. Maybe if he went to sleep with a relaxed mind, he wouldn't be troubled by nightmares tonight.
"Hella, you need to smack some sense into your demon," Codie grumbled, and because Hella loved him, she instantly woke up and pounced on top of me.
"Oh fuck," I growled as she attacked my face, licking all over as Codie laughed and laughed. But even the dog drool couldn't take away from my joy at hearing that delightful sound.
Codie
I nuzzled Pythor's chest as my brain came back online, the chirp of birds and warmth on my back alerting me it was morning. How late in the morning, I didn't really care to find out.
I knew we needed to get up and start our day, but I was far too relaxed and at peace to bother moving.
Yesterday felt like a dream, and while I hadn't had any nightmares last night, the images from yesterday were fresh in my mind.
Pythor had been so... so strong, so deadly as he punished the men who'd hurt me.
It made me wonder if that was how he'd been as a torturer of the Underworld.
I much preferred my Pythor, but I'd seen glimpses of his other side yesterday, and I had to admit I'd liked what I'd seen.
Tilting my head up, I pressed a kiss against his neck, then another, sucking in a sliver of his skin before biting down on it. He'd told me he couldn't feel pain unless the person hurting him was a dark soul or using dark magic, but he must still feel something because he woke up with a grunt.
"Codie?"
"Good morning," I murmured against his throat before kissing him some more.
I was on his right side, with him on his back and half of my body on top of him.
His arm squeezed around my middle, and I hummed as I licked at his smooth skin.
It tasted like smoke, spicy with a slightly bitter taste, and I loved it.
Shifting a little, I reached for his lips, and he blinked at me before meeting me halfway, kissing me back with equal fervor.
I didn't know if I'd ever feel comfortable enough to completely bare myself to him, to give him all of me. But I knew that I wanted to be closer to Pythor, closer than I'd been until now.
Pythor would never push me, never ask me for more than I was capable of giving him, and that made it so damned easy to want to give him everything.
I slid my tongue over his lower lip, and he parted them for me, allowing my tongue inside.
Licking around his mouth, I moaned as I felt my cock harden in my sleep pants.
It wasn't the first time I'd gotten hard around him, but it was the first time I wasn't actively ignoring my erection.
Or Pythor's, since I could feel it press against the thigh I'd slid between his legs as I practically climbed on top of him.
"Will you shift?" I mumbled against his lips, since I always felt more comfortable when I could see his true form.
He was just so different like that, so clearly not a mere man, that it made it easier for me to remember who he was when I started panicking.
And right then, I really didn't want things to end in a panic attack.
Instead of replying, I felt his body shift under me, the change taking less than a few seconds as his body grew.
"Your wings," I murmured, trying to climb off him, but he tightened his hold on me.
"They're okay. Nothing can hurt me, remember?"
I nodded, and once I was sure he wasn't lying, I kissed him again as I trailed my right hand down his bare chest, soaking in the warmth of his skin.
When my fingers brushed against the waistband of his leather pants, I pulled back from the kiss to meet his eyes. They were darker than usual, his lips wet and so damned soft that I couldn't resist kissing them again before forcing myself to pull back.
"May I?" I asked, tugging at his waistband, and his eyes searched my face for a long moment before he nodded.
Smiling, I unbuttoned his pants and tugged at them, then remembered they were leather, and glanced back up at him.
"Can you just?" I snapped my fingers in demonstration, and he grinned, then snapped his fingers, making his pants disappear.
"Fuck," I mumbled as my hand fell on his cloth-covered dick, the hard erection straining against the material of his boxers.
Leaning up, I kissed him again as I slid my hand under his boxers, then over his cock, humming at the feel of it.
It was hot against my palm, thick and a little longer than mine.
His skin was silky soft, but also kinda leathery, like the skin on his wings.
That little tactile detail made it easy for me to remember whose cock I had in my hand as I started sliding my palm up and down his length, and he groaned into my mouth, his whole body stilling as he held himself in check.
Fuck, how could this demon be so damned good? How could he still be focused on my comfort instead of chasing after his own pleasure? How had I gotten so fucking lucky?
I froze when I realized I'd been rutting against his hip as I jerked him off, but then he gave me a squeeze. "It's okay," he murmured, his voice soft and warm against my lips. "Take your pleasure from me, Codie. It's okay."
Exhaling shakily, I started moving again, our lips moving messily against each other's as I continued jerking Pythor off.
"Shit!" he growled, alerting me he was close, and it took only a few moments for him to spill over my fist, his cum warm and thick as it covered my hand.
I could feel my own climax drawing near, and I tucked my face against his neck as I chased it, my hips stuttering as I rocked against Pythor, as he held me close and kissed my head and any part of me he could reach.
"Pythor!" I gasped out as I fell over the edge, my whole body shaking as I spilled into my underwear and tremors rocked through me.
I didn't realize I'd started crying until a sob escaped my lips, and Pythor snapped his fingers, making the mess in my hand and boxers disappear as he tugged me until I was fully on top of him before wrapping his wings around me.
I clung to him, my face pressed between his pecs, and he let me hide as the emotions overwhelmed me.
It wasn't that I hated what we'd done, or that it'd triggered me. I just felt... unmoored. Like Pythor was the only thing holding me here and I'd float away if he let go.
I'd been so afraid they'd taken this from me forever, that I'd never be able to be intimate with someone, but I'd proven they hadn't.
Most of the credit went to Pythor because I was sure I couldn't do this with anyone else. Pythor made me feel safe, made me feel like I could do anything as long as he was with me. He made me feel brave.