Page 22 of Inevitably Yves

His hand moves to the back of my neck, drawing us closer until the inevitable happens. Our lips touch, and in an instant I know I would give my life for this man.

“Cillian,” Lorenzo whispers as he flicks his tongue along the seam of my lips.

I open to him, melting into the strange warmth of his mouth. Why does his kiss taste like sunshine and Hadrian’s tastes like hell itself?

He breaks the kiss, holding my gaze. “I am so madly in love with you, Cillian. My heart is yours. No matter what happens, it is always yours.”

Closing my eyes, I try to deny the truth, knowing the danger it puts us in, but perhaps I do not care anymore. Perhaps a love like this is worth any repercussions.

“I love you, Enzo,” I whisper. “I love you with all that I am. I am willing to risk it all for you.”

The smile on his face could light a midnight sky. “Ah, my beautiful man. If he staked my heart tonight, I would perish a happy man.” He sinks to his knees, unbuttoning my trousers. “But while I still live, let me worship at your feet.”

“All the gods, Yves,” Damiano says. “I can feel everything you felt. Every thought you had.”

“Then you know how much I truly loved you.”

He rolls over on top of me. “And you know how much I loved you in that moment. I only wish to prove how much I still do.”

“You have nothing to prove. I feel it, as clear now as it was then.”

“Every dream we had is at our fingertips. I said it then and I will say it again. Hadrian be damned. Let us begin his journey to the underworld.”

I brush my fingers across his cheek. “The world is ours once more. Will you come meet my family now?”

“Yves, my beloved, don’t you know I will always do anything you ask of me? Demand I carve out my heart and hand it to you, and I will with my dying breath. I deny you nothing.”

“How is it you haven’t changed at all? The world has worn its mark on me, but you? Nothing.”

“Long story I’ll happily share, but please, first let’s meet your family. I owe them my great thanks for loving you until I could be with you again.”

As we dress, my mind swirls with emotions, from joy to concern to abject fear of losing him again.

“It’ll be okay, Yves,” Damiano says. “He went to great lengths to keep us apart, but for me, it only strengthens my resolve to defeat him.”

“I know.” I button my shirt. “I also know how formidable he is.”

“Don’t underestimate us. Besides, we have an army of our own. I feel them on the other side of these walls.”

A smile pulls at my lips. “Yes. Let’s go.”

NINE

Damiano

When Yves opens the door to his unit, I’m hit with a wave of emotions. Everything from curiosity to protectiveness to pure affection. There’s no talking, only several men facing me. Sniffing the air, I lift my head slightly.

“There’s a mortal here.”

“Two mortals,” one of the men I was with earlier—Syn, I think—says. “Our sisters join us.”

Sure enough, in a large open room set up like a living room, two women sit together on an oversized armchair. Energy pours off one of them, a pretty redhead.

“You are deceptive,” I say to her. “A flower maiden on the surface, but a force of nature beneath it. I bet that serves you well.”

She smiles as the other woman gazes at her in awe. “That’s me. Vivienne, house witch. Pleasure to meet you.” She turns to face the woman beside her, a raven-haired beauty with tattoos and a much softer energy. How odd. “This is Viper.”

“I take care of the business side of the House of Orpheus.”

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