Chapter 21
Tacita
“You changed the challenge.”
I’d lain in waiting for Garrick in his office and feel a rush of satisfaction as he jumps back a foot at my unexpected presence. Ever seen one of those cats leaping in the air from a cucumber? Yeah, that’s what this kitty was reenacting right now.
His eyes narrow as he recovers and prowls toward where I’m perched against his desk. “How the fuck are you still getting in here?”
“Tell me why you changed the game and I might tell you,” I lie. I have no intention of revealing that secret just yet. I’ll let it eat at him for a while longer.
“I know you saw the plans. Can’t be giving you an advantage.” He watches me closely for a reaction to his confession.
“Advantage? You don’t think the fact I’ve worked for Hades for three centuries far outweighs any knowledge I have of the games. Or the fact I am a demon, stronger than all those humans combined.”
“No, but you might skew the chances of some others in the games. Two in particular if my guards' reports can be trusted.” He stares more intensely at me, expecting me to be surprised that his team has noticed how much time I’m spending with Milo and Wyatt.
They could extend that to Seffy as well at this point but I’m guessing Garrick left her out on purpose, especially after he quizzed me about sleeping with Wyatt previously.
“You bringing that up only confirms one thing, Garrick,” I say, folding my arms under my chest.
“You aren’t going to deny that you’re close with two of the contestants?”
“Why would I? I’ve not hidden it. The fact you’re bringing it up, though, says that you care about who my allies are in here.”
“I couldn’t care less.”
“Really?”
“Really.” He scowls down at me, taking another step so he’s nearly towering over me.
“So why are we talking about Wyatt and Milo when I came here to discuss the game?”
“Because you’re being distracted by Thirty-Nine and Nineteen.”
“Fuck off!” I do react now, unfolding my arms and getting in his face. He can accuse me of whatever he likes but I am taking this mission seriously.
“Hit a nerve, Goddess?”
“If you’re questioning my professional integrity, then yes. Fuck you, and fuck this.” I try to move past him, deciding that getting something useful about the wild goose chase they’re sending us on with this second task is pointless.
He steps to the side, blocking my exit.
“Let me go.”
“No. Tell me now. Do I have to tell Hades that you’re falling for not one but two of the suspects on our list?”
My fists clench as I reign in my demon. The burn under my skin as my body wants to shift is hard to dampen down. “One, Hades was there when we discussed one of those sexual encounters, so he’s well aware. Two, how I conduct this mission is none of your concern.”
“It is if you’ve been compromised. From what I’ve heard, once has turned into a regular thing.”
I shift then. Well, I let my horns, tail, and talons out. I manage to not shift fully, keeping my wings from bursting from my back. I shove Garrick so hard he stumbles back, my sharpened nails catching the material of his shirt, tearing the fabric.
“Be very aware of who you’re speaking to, Garrick,” I seethe at him.
He retaliates by coming at me, grabbing my wrists and pushing them back against my chest. He uses the supernatural strength granted to him by his panther to force me back until the backs of my thighs hit his desk.
Expecting him to stop there, I’m put on the disadvantage when he keeps going, folding me back until I lose stability and my back hits the desk.
Trying to get my legs folded enough to deliver a powerful kick to this asshole, preferably to the balls, backfires when he uses his hips to push my thighs wide enough for him to press between them.
I snarl and he growls right back, leaning over me, his weight going onto my wrists pinned to my chest.
“I am in charge here,” he commands in a low tone.
I can’t help the way my heart rate accelerates at his dominance.
I could still turn the tables on him but maybe I don’t want to.
Being trapped underneath his barely leashed feral side is making certain parts of my anatomy spark to life and the thought about seeing this predator unravel blossoms in my mind.
“Last I checked, I was in Hades’s inner circle, you’re just his top guard dog.” The taunt lands as I expect.
Garrick moves my wrists from my chest to above my head, stretching my arms to the max to avoid my horns. The move lowers his upper body until he’s hovering over me and the air between us crackles with electricity. I swear I can feel the static prickling my skin even through our clothes.
“I’m not a fucking dog,” he growls, eyes narrowed to slits and setting alight.
“Really? You seem pretty brutish to me.”
“Shut up.” A full body shudder rattles through him as his control frays.
“Make me,” I dare him.
He snaps as his lips come crashing to mine. It’s the detonation I was hoping for. His tongue is hot and commanding as it forces its way into my mouth. His hips press me into the desk, his cock growing hard between us. I grow wet between my legs just as quickly.
It feels inevitable, all this tension we’ve been growing, all the snarky remarks and incessant irritation has led to this, us taking it out on each other’s bodies.
Using his claws, my top is ripped down the centre to expose my chest to his pawing hands. Thankfully, he retracts the sharp nails before he grips my breast in his hand, taking a full handful and squeezing deliciously before pinching my nipple through the fabric of the bra still covering them.
I haul his shirt up and over his head, our lips breaking apart so I can pull it clean off his body. He takes the opportunity to remove my ruined top and bra too.
Drinking him in, he really is a sight to behold. Miles of olive skin stretched over clearly defined muscles. Pecs and abs that tense under my gaze, making me want to lick every inch of them.
His smouldering gaze looks as lust drunk as I feel as he drinks in the parts of my body on display for him. Having gotten rid of his top, I move my hands back to behind my head. Happy for him to take control in this scenario.
“You’ve got three seconds to back down,” he drawls, hands coming to the waistband of my prison trousers.
“If you stop now, I may just kill you,” I tell him, already panting with anticipation.
Correctly taking my threat as consent, he rips away the rest of my clothes, leaving me naked and spread out on his desk.
His eyes catch on the garland of roses and belladonna on my thigh and he traces the ink round to the dagger on the outer side with the pad of his thumb. “Is this ink from one of the witches?”
“Morgana,” I tell him quickly, growing agitated at his distraction.
His eyes widen, their focus shooting to my face instead. “That must’ve cost you a pretty penny.”
“Worth every coin, and I’ll show you how it works if you don’t get inside me in the next few seconds.”
His hand swings before slapping the side of my ass cheek, just behind the dagger etched into my skin. The pain radiates straight to my core and sucks the air from my lungs.
“I am in charge here, Goddess.” The feline snarl is back in his voice.
He may well think so, but he complies to my request by unzipping his combat trousers and taking out his cock.
I don’t get a chance to look at him before he’s thrusting into me to the hilt.
I cry out at the intrusion, only remembering the wider flared head on his cock, a signature attribute of his species, as he pushes it deep inside my body.
The drag backwards as he withdraws has me crying out in surrender, the width dragging on my walls in the most delicious way.
Moving my hands to grip onto the edge of the desk above my head, the panther between my thighs sets a punishing rhythm, one hand pushing my tattooed leg towards my chest to ensure he gets as deep as possible. The other palm comes back to knead my breast.
Twisting my nipple once more, but harder this time, I cry out again as pleasure and pain mingle in one delicious mix that sends my vision blurry.
“Have you forgotten, Goddess, what it’s like to fuck someone with demonic powers? Have you been taming yourself with those humans?” Garrick’s voice does something to my brain. Whilst my body takes his onslaught and coils ever tighter, his words give me an anger filled clarity.
Launching myself upright I stretch one hand forward, gripping his throat with my talons. “Don’t bring them into this.”
“Protective, are you?”
“They have nothing to do with this,” I growl, closing my fingers further and breaking skin with my pointed nails.
Garrick hisses, flying back, pulling out of me, and rubbing a hand to his own neck. His fingers come away bloody.
“I don’t get it.” His ferocity seems to melt away and he shows a moment of genuine curiosity. “You mean it.”
“I do. What I do with them has nothing to do with whatever this is,” I tell him bluntly. “Not that this is anything.”
“Is that so?” His eyes darken and he stalks towards me once more. I squeal as he pounces, flipping me over onto my stomach and forcing himself back between my legs as my feet hit the floor. “Then you won’t mind me using you like a whore and letting you run back to your precious humans.”
He pushes his long cock back inside me from behind, the fullness and the new position instantly returns me to putty in his hands. His rough treatment and hate filled words driving the heat inside me to an inferno.
I’d thought the pace he set punishing before, it’s nothing on the utterly feral way he fucks into me now. Wrapping a fist around my hair, he pulls me back onto him as he thrusts so deep I fear my insides are getting obliterated.
The noises coming from me are so sinful I’d be blushing if my blood wasn’t rushing to my core. My cunt tightens around his hard length as he practically forces the orgasm on my body. I can do nothing but hold on to the wood and prey that I survive.
When I explode, it's visceral, purely demonic and with such force I arch up, pushing back to make sure Garrick stays buried to the hilt in my pussy as I ride wave after wave of pleasure.
“Fuck, every inch of you is fucking stunning, this view is enough to kill a male,” he pants above me, his voice even more gravelly. I wasn’t expecting the praise but it sends aftershocks skittering across my skin and pulls my lips into a smile.
He drops my hair, using both hands to hold onto my hips as he pounds into me a few more times before he finds his own release. Jets of his hot come mix with my arousal and the scent of sex fills the room to a potent level.
I expect him to just pull out after he’s done but he doesn’t move, his cock staying buried inside me even as he starts to deflate. He brushes my hair off my back, gently swiping it over my right shoulder before gently running his hands up and down my spine.
Leaning on my elbows, I let my breathing recover and enjoy the moment of calm after the storm we just experienced. But before long the hard desk underneath me gets uncomfortable and I have to push myself upright.
Garrick growls as our bodies break apart but his arms help me to stand on shaky legs. He still surrounds me and doesn’t give me space as he continues to stroke my naked flesh, wrapping one arm around my middle.
One hand reaches up and caresses the side of one of my horns and I nearly buckle.
“That’s sensitive,” I gasp, pulling my head to the side. It doesn’t stop him touching them again, forcing me to lean back into him as my strength fails. The hard exterior of them may look like I might not feel much when touched but it's the opposite.
“You’re so much more than I expected.” The words are said so softly I wonder whether Garrick even meant to say them out loud.
“You aren’t exactly what I anticipated either. You've always been so professional when we’ve met before.”
“And you haven’t said a single word.” He chuckles. He’s correct of course, all our interactions until this point have been in a work capacity where I’ve been wearing my mask. “But you’re right, I am meant to be professional.”
He pulls away then and I feel the instant chill like walls of ice get erected between us. He starts sorting out our clothes that were haphazardly thrown around the room. He hands me mine, including my shredded top and quietly dresses without once glancing at my body.
His cum is still leaking down my thighs and he’s managed to reset like we’re colleagues. It’s giving me whiplash.
“Garrick…” I start to say.
“Don’t. I overstepped the line. It won’t happen again.” He moves over to his desk, sitting down in the chair and fixing the few items that we’d disturbed in our tryst.
I close my lips and finish pulling on my trainers. Leaving the ruined crop top in one of the empty chairs, I pause for a few more seconds before deciding to take the escape he’s giving me.
This place is messing with my head. I don’t know what I was going to say to him just now but I should be glad that he’s treating this as a one-time thing. So why do I feel numb instead?
Shaking off the rejection, I retreat after making sure there are no officers across the hall.
I duck out of his office and make my escape from the Officers’ building.
I’m running super late for meeting up with Milo, Wyatt, and our little gang anyway.
I don’t have time to dwell on the cataclysmic shift I’ve just experienced.