Chapter 17
Iris
“It’s almost midnight,” I say, trying to make my voice sound more assured than I am. “We should get ready.”
I’m not ready to say goodbye. I’m not ready for him to leave.
To be alone again. I have no idea how I’ll return to my regular life after him.
It sounds so ridiculous, but these past forty-eight hours have changed me.
Not only have I been fucked senseless, which during the last round in the kitchen, I’m pretty sure I saw God, but I’ve also fallen in love with this monster of the night.
Only he’s not a monster.
“Did you really mean those threats? The ones about taking the souls of all my loved ones?”
Basil walks up to me, wrapping me in his arms. My head tilts back so I can look up at him and meet his gaze. “Absolutely not, petal. I could never harm you or anyone you cared for.”
I laugh lightly. “Well, you were really convincing.”
“All a part of my job, love.”
Love.
Breathing deep, I clasp his hand in mine and lead him into my bedroom for what may be the last time.
“Are you ready?” I ask, knowing my own answer is a resounding no.
Basil turns around, picking up the mud-caked pants he was wearing when he first appeared in my life.
The instructions said he needed an item from home, and aside from the pants being from Hell, he hopes that the mud, being direct earth from the land he is trying to return to, will help build a stronger connection.
He drops his sweatpants, and my eyes instantly go to his unveiled cocks, hanging between his thick thighs.
Two cocks that have not only brought me mind-bending orgasms, but cocks that are connected to the most wonderful monster I have ever met.
Not that I’ve met many. But meeting this one is more than enough.
Stepping into his trousers, he pulls them up and does up the button, before looking up at me, where he is met with watery eyes and a rosy nose as I fight back the tears eager to burst free.
“Oh, petal. Do not shed a tear for me. This is merely a formality. I need a way to be able to get home and back. I have people to manage and a business to run.”
I dab at the tears in the corner of my eyes. “I know. But what if you can’t get back?”
“I’ll always be able to get to you. Time, space, none of it matters.”
He steps forward, closing the distance between us as he takes my face in my hands, kissing me deeply. My knees nearly buckle when his tongue makes contact with mine. I moan into him, trying to tell him everything I feel through the kiss alone. But it will never be enough.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The alarm on my phone goes off, giving us the one-minute warning until midnight. I pull back, breaking the kiss and moving away from the love of my life. Silencing the alarm, I keep my phone in my hand, so we know precisely when midnight strikes.
We step over to the side of my bed, hands clasped. Basil draws in a deep breath, filling his broad chest as he channels his power. His eyes glow brighter as the magic takes hold, casting a red hue before us.
“Ten seconds,” I say.
He lets go of my hand, placing both of his out front.
I close my eyes and count down. “Five. Four. Three. Two. One.”
“OPEN!” He calls, his voice firm, deep, and commanding.
It doesn’t seem like anything happens at first. I’m not sure what I expected, but there’s no sound, no smells, nothing. I can hear Basil breathing deeply beside me, likely spent from having to call on so much power. Cracking an eye open, I see that something did, in fact, happen.
A faint, but growing dark blue glow emanates from under my bed. As I take a breath, I begin to smell a stronger version of that campfire scent I love so much. It smells like home. Like love. Like Basil.
I pop my other eye open and bend down, trying to get a better look.
“It worked,” Basil says, surprised. “It actually worked!” He turns, scooping me up and spinning us around. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he chants into my ear. It’s hard not to be excited along with him, so I start to giggle as he continues to dance us around.
Wrapped up in our own celebrations, we are too occupied to hear the voices coming from the portal before they enter the room.
“Basil! Basil! Is that you?”
“It’s him!”
Two figures crawl out from under my bed as Basil places my feet back on the floor. “Nix? Felix?” He calls out, his face glowing with anticipation amid the light from the portal.
“BASIL!” they respond in unison, bringing themselves to their full height.
“We’ve been looking all over for you,” the taller one says.
“Felix!” Basil lurches forward, pulling him into a hug before turning to face me and saying, “My brother.” He pulls Nix into a hug after and says, “My assistant.”
“We are so happy to see you, sir. We got a report that there had been travel through the broken portal, but couldn’t find where it led or figure out how to get it open again so we could go back through it,” Nix explains.
“Yes, it’s been a whole ordeal. But,” he says, stepping over to me and taking me in his arms, “I discovered my love along the way and I wouldn’t change a single thing about how it all happened.” He kisses my nose and gives me a loving smile. “Nix. Felix. This is Iris. The woman I’m gonna marry.”