AJ Jarrett Eliass Clueless Witch

Warriors of the Light 10

Elias’s Clueless Witch

Nothing but pain and death follows in a witch’s path. That was

what Elias Neman had always believed, that is until he meets his

fated mate, a mate who is the son of the most hated man in the

paranormal world, and a witch.

Abel Brossard is absolutely clueless when it comes to being a

witch and learning to control his power to freeze things is only

made more complicated when he meets Elias. He’s finding it hard

to deny his attraction to the warrior, but Elias’s constant bad

mouthing his father leaves Abel questioning everything he thought

he knew about the father who abandoned him.

Abel needs to find out the truth, is his father the monster

everyone claims him to be or is there more to the story? There’s

only one way to find out and Abel hopes he hasn’t just led him and

Elias into a trap.

Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Contemporary, Paranormal,
Shape-Shifter, Vampires/Werewolves
Length: 45,693 words

ELIAS'S CLUELESS WITCH

Warriors of the Light 10

AJ Jarrett

EVERLASTING CLASSIC

MANLOVE

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IMPRINT: Everlasting Classic ManLove

ELIAS'S CLUELESS WITCH
Copyright © 2014 by AJ Jarrett
E-book ISBN: 978-1-63258-576-9

First E-book Publication: November 2014

Cover design by Harris Channing
All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

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All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance
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Letter to Readers

Dear Readers,

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ELIAS'S CLUELESS WITCH

Warriors of the Light 10

AJ JARRETT

Chapter One

One. Two. Three. Abel took a deep breath.
“Ouch!” Abel doubled over, clutching at his stomach. Tears

burned at the back of his eyes. One would think after a week and
several hours of this torture he’d be used to it by now.

“Come on, Abel, get up. You can do this.” Strong hands grabbed

Abel by the shoulders, forcing him up.

Abel looked up to see Quinn, a huge, muscular warrior staring

down at him. The constant scowl on the man’s face did nothing to
ease the fear and pain coursing through Abel’s body.

“I…I’m not sure I ca…can,” Abel stuttered as he tried to steady

his feet under himself. God, it’d only been ten minutes and he was
ready to call it a day.

“With that attitude you never will.” The hard lines of Quinn’s face

softened and he gentled his tone. “You need to practice, Abel. Once
you get the hang of controlling your power you’ll be unstoppable
against the dark warriors.”

Quinn gave what looked to be a smile but came off more as a

sneer that had Abel’s hands clenching into fists. He hated being so
afraid of everyone and everything. Before all this, his life had been
easy. He was able to live his life in peace away from the craziness of

AJ Jarrett

dark warriors wanting to kill him. Oh, and the Warriors of the Light
needing his help.

Help? What a joke.
It had been a little over a week since Abel left San Francisco to

come to Texas with his new friends. Without Josh, Carlos, Lachlan,
and Garrett, Abel would never have survived, let alone made it out of
San Francisco in one piece. The life Abel lived was so different than
what was expected of him now. Couldn’t everyone see he just wanted
to be normal?

Abel was the child of a witch and a vampire. He was an anomaly

in their world, but when magic is brought into play anything is
possible and Abel, it just so happened, was the product of such magic.

His mother had been a nice and sweet lady. Her only fault had

been wanting to have a child. In a fit of despair she cast a spell and
hopped into bed with the first man she saw, who just so happened to
be a vampire.

Abel knew his parents were good people even though the rest of

the word thought his father was a killer. He knew better than that.
People judged what they didn’t understand. People tended to act first
and ask questions later and his father had been on the run for over a
thousand years because of the stupidity of others. If only those in
power had given his father the chance to explain he wouldn’t have
been forced to run and leave Abel vulnerable to others wanting to
harm him.

Now his mother had it a little different. Her just being a witch was

frowned upon and being that she was a witch that possessed the
ability to undo any other witch’s curse made her dangerous and a hot
commodity to the paranormal community. In order to protect herself,
she had a good friend who also was a witch cast a spell that made her
unrecognizable to the rest of the paranormal world. This had worked
for her up until she casted another spell that allowed her to become
pregnant. She unintentionally made a super being, part vampire part
witch. It was impossible for paranormal to crossbreed. Up until he

Elias's Clueless Witch

met Astrid, a man that was part fairy and part witch, Abel had thought
he was the only one.

It wasn’t fair. Abel didn’t ask to be born into all this and after the

death of his mother he was raised by her human boyfriend, Phillip.
Phillip tried his best to give Abel a normal upbringing. Even Asher,
Abel’s father, stopped coming around in hopes that Abel had a chance
at a nice normal life. A lot of good that did.

Now, as he stood in the back yard of the house he now called

home, Abel was just sick and tired. A sharp pain radiated up from his
lower abdomen to the top of his head. The bright sun beat down on
him and caused a trickle of sweat to run down the side of his face.
Abel hated this. He just wanted to go back inside and draw, paint,
anything at this point than be outside.

“Hello! Earth to Abel.” Quinn snapped his fingers in front of

Abel’s face.

Abel gritted his teeth and tried to beat down the urge to slap this

jerk in the face. He knew Quinn and the others were just trying to help
him, but hell, he just couldn’t do the things they thought he could. It
was useless. He was useless.

“I don’t want to do this anymore.” Abel straightened his

shoulders. “I appreciate all that you guys have done for me but this—
” Abel brought his arms up to indicate the paint splattered on him and
the bruised skin that wasn’t covered by his clothes. “Just isn’t
working out. I’m not good at this.”

“That’s just because you’re telling yourself you can’t do this.”

Quinn crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at Abel,
making him feel two feet tall. “Do you really want to quit? Give up on
what your abilities are? Lose the opportunity to learn to protect
yourself?” Quinn let out a bitter sounding chuckle. “Do you want to
be a victim for the rest of your long life? Well—” Quinn shrugged.
“Long if you don’t get yourself killed first.”

Abel took a deep breath and his lips pursed into a hard line. “You

know what, Quinn?” Abel pointed at the paintball gun held in Quinn’s

AJ Jarrett

meaty hand. “How is shooting me with those paint-filled balls ever
going to help me? I’m covered in that oily paint and bruises.”

Quinn lifted the gun up and looked at it. “I thought since you were

an artist you’d appreciate the paint ball instead of me using a pellet
gun. Which, might I add, pellets are a lot smaller than paintballs and
harder to spot. Plus, you’re a paranormal and you heal quickly, so
stop your whining.”

“Are you always this crass and insufferable?” Abel’s jaw

tightened and he could feel heat rush up his neck to fill his face.

“Those are some big words coming from a guy with a gun pointed

at him.” Quinn raised the paintball gun and aimed it right at Abel’s
chest. “You whine too much for a man that pretty much has a bull’s
eye on his back. You’re a dead man if you walk out the front door.
Dark warriors want you for god only knows what. My guess is to
torture you for information on your useless father, then they’ll rip out
your throat. At least then you can go live in hell with your worthless
witch of a mother.”

“You—” Abel’s fist clenched tight and his whole body began to

shake.

“What?” The right side of Quinn’s lip quirked up and he waved

the gun from side to side. “You don’t like the truth. It hurts doesn’t
it?”

A surge of energy leapt through Abel’s body. It was as if he’d

been hit by lightning. Sparks flicked from the tips of his fingertips but
Abel ignored it. His anger had him so hell bent on hurting Quinn. He
had no right to say those things about his parents.

“Maybe you’re right. This is a waste of time.” Quinn cocked his

head to the side and looked out toward the front part of the yard.
“You’re weak and give up way too easy. I should just put a bullet in
your head and end your, and hell, my misery. Admit it, Abel. You’re
a waste of everyone’s time.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

Quinn lifted the gun higher and aimed it at Abel’s forehead. Abel

knew it was a paintball gun that couldn’t do any real damage, but it
still stung like a bitch. But not as much as Quinn’s words.

The sound of a click warned Abel, that Quinn had cocked the

trigger, then a whoosh as the paintball rushed down the barrel.

Abel raised his hands in the air, streaks of light shot from his

fingertips, and he screamed, “No!”

Everything fell silent as if all the air and life had been sucked

away from around him. Abel gasped for breath and looked around.
The sun still shined down from the bright blue sky and the large brick
house sat toward his left but no sound of movement could be detected
by Abel. He turned in a circle glancing around him, his mouth hung
open in shock. As he came back around to face Quinn he jolted back a
step and fell on his butt.

“What the…” Abel looked up at Quinn. He was frozen where he

stood. The same stern look on his face, gun held high. The round
orange paintball hung in the air about two inches in front of the barrel,
frozen.

“I did it,” Abel whispered as he scrambled to his feet and moved

to stand beside Quinn and the small ball. He tapped it with his finger
and it shifted down a little. “I freaking did it!” Abel couldn’t believe
it. Excitement and pride filled his body. He smiled up at the afternoon
sky.

Movement caught his eye as a bird flew closer, but as it neared

Abel it stopped mid-wing flap, frozen in time like everything
surrounding him. He didn’t understand his power or its capability but
damn this was cool.

Abel waved a hand in front of Quinn’s glazed-over eyes, then

poked a finger into Quinn’s arm, and the man didn’t move a muscle.
He did it again and laughed. “What was that, Quinn?” Abel held a
hand to his ear and cupped it toward Quinn. “Couldn’t hear you.”
Abel chuckled.

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After he sobered enough, Abel reached out and grabbed the

paintball and held it up, examining it. “I don’t get how something so
small and fragile can be so painful when coming at a person.” Abel
shook his head, still amazed how those paint-filled balls caused the
big blue and purple bruises on his skin. He might be a paranormal
being but he didn’t heal as fast as the others.

Abel tossed the ball in the air and caught it. He glanced from the

ball, then to Quinn, then the ball. A smiled curled his lips as he lifted
his hand and smashed the ball into Quinn’s chest, smearing the greasy
paint into his shirt.

“How do you like it?” Abel giggled. “Not so tough now.”
A car roared in the distance and just like that the backyard came

back to life.

“What the fuck!” Quinn shouted and Abel turned to see him

looking down at his shirt. As if just noticing Abel wasn’t in front of
him Quinn spun around. “What happened? Are you okay?” Quinn
reached out and laid his heavy hand on Abel’s shoulder.

“I’m fine, thanks for asking.” Abel smiled at the concern on

Quinn’s face. The man liked to play the bad-ass-uncaring-man role
but it was a lie. “I just froze you and everything within about a quarter
mile surrounding me,” Abel said proudly. He shoved his hands in his
pockets. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“No shit,” Quinn said in awe as he looked at the house, then about

the backyard, then back to Abel. “See, you can do this, Abel. I guess
your power is fed by your emotions.” Quinn nodded his head. “I had a
hunch that would be the case. Sorry about all that stuff I said, Abel. I
was just trying to get you worked up to see if we had any luck with
getting your power working.”

“I figured as much.” Abel shrugged. He understood what Quinn

was trying to do, but the words still stung.

“Now we just need to find a way for you to harness that power.”

Quinn gave him a tight-lipped smile, then looked down at his chest.

Elias's Clueless Witch

He pulled at the orange wet spot on his black T-shirt. “How the hell
did this happen?” He cocked an eyebrow at Abel.

“I…well…you see.” Abel squinted an eye. At the time it seemed

like a good idea, but the look on Quinn’s face had him thinking he
might have over stepped his boundaries.

“Oh, I see.” Quinn raised the gun back to Abel’s chest. “Let’s see

how long it takes for you powers to boot back up.”

Before Abel could say another word Quinn pulled the trigger and

Abel dropped to his knees. “Motherfucker, that hurts.” He looked up
at Quinn’s smiling face.

“I bet that stings. At close range and all.” Quinn chuckled. “Okay,

witchy, let’s see if we can get that powers of yours working a little bit
faster.” Quinn offered him a hand and helped him to his feet. “You
ready to get back to work?”

“No.” Abel rubbed at his chest. Quinn shot him from such a close

range the paintball didn’t even break. “But do I have a choice?”

“No, but it’s always nice to think you do.”
Abel rolled his eyes heavenward. Mom, if you’re up there

watching over me, please give me the strength to survive all this.

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Two

The large black SUV came to a stop in front of the sprawling

brick mansion the Warriors of the Light had taken up residency in.
Elias had only been here once before and that was when he moved his
belongings into an empty room after returning from his mission in
Florida.

Florida.
Elias closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He hated when his

mind went back in time to the place where he watched his good friend
Cason die. Killed by dark warriors while trying to save Elias. Maybe
that was part of Elias’s issue with Cason’s death. His friend had
risked his life in order to save his, and Elias would never be able to
repay the debt.

“Home sweet home, E,” Aaron said as he put the car into park and

pulled the keys from the ignition. “Or at least until we are forced to
move again.”

Elias nodded his head and climbed out the car. He raised his arms

above his head to stretch out the kinks tightening his muscles. The
nine hour plane ride from Anchorage to San Antonio wasn’t Elias’s
idea of fun. Being a cougar shifter, he liked to have his space and
being cooped up in an airplane for that long was tiring for more
reasons than one.

Elias might bitch and moan about the job but he wouldn’t trade it

for anything in there world. After losing Cason he’d made it his
mission to protect those who couldn’t protect themselves from dark
forces and conniving evil witches. And he swore to kill every last one
that came across his path. And he did exactly that.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Elias had teamed up with Aaron, a fellow warrior of the light.

Aaron was a wolf shifter like Cason and Aaron reminded Elias a lot of
Cason. Both were easy to talk to. Liked to joke around but could also
be serious and get down to business when the time called for it.
Someone who he could rely on. Elias just hoped he didn’t let Aaron
down the way he’d let Cason.

Their leader Ben had sent them to Anchorage to help some

paranormals who’d taken refuge there after the council had been
destroyed. A clan of bear shifters had moved to Anchorage and were
being hunted down by dark warriors, a group of bloodthirsty vamps
who Elias had taken up calling scavengers.

The scavengers, as Elias liked to call them, were soulless

monsters that killed everything in their path. There was no rhyme or
reason to who they went after or why, they just did. It was as if they’d
lost all control of their urges and surrendered their souls to the dark.
They targeted paranormal beings and would eliminate the entire group
they’d come upon, men, women, and even children.

Elias and Aaron had hunted down the pack of deranged vamps

and took them out one by one. They had been strong, unlike anything
Elias had ever gone up against before. They were mindless to their
surroundings and were only fueled by their hunger. They were more
like wild animals than part man part monster.

“Let’s just hope for a few weeks of peace and quiet, yeah?” Elias

snatched up his bag and headed for the front door.

A soft breeze blew over his face as he came up the walk way and

something sweet and spicy caused his nose to twitch and his pulse to
pick up a notch. Elias stopped and turned in a slow circle, looking for
the cause of this odd sensation consuming him.

“Hey, man, what’s up?” Aaron patted Elias on his shoulder as he

came up behind him. “You feeling okay?”

Another wind gust fanned over his face and Elias narrowed his

eyes. Something wasn’t right with that smell. It made him feel things,
urges.

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“Yeah.” Elias gave his friend a tight smile. “I’m good. Just tired I

guess.”

“Me, too.” Aaron hustled up the steps leading to the front door.

“It’s been nearly two weeks since I’ve seen Toby. I can’t wait to give
him a big hug.”

Elias gave his friend a sympathetic smile. Aaron’s younger

brother, Toby, was still trying to put his life back together after his
attack. Toby had only been seventeen when a Dark Warrior, Lucian,
had raped and beat him until an inch of his life. If it hadn’t been for
Aaron finding him in time, the younger man would have been killed.
So like Elias, Aaron had every reason to want to see every dark
warrior dead.

“He’s lucky to have you, man.”
Aaron paused at the door, his hand posed to twist the nod. “Some

days I wonder if he feels that way. If I’d only gotten to him sooner…”
Aaron’s voice cracked and he coughed to clear his throat.

“Hey, don’t talk like that.” Elias squeezed Aaron’s shoulder. “You

saved him from what else might have happened to him that night.
Sure it sucks you hadn’t arrived sooner, but you did get there. You
couldn’t have foreseen what happened that night so no one can blame
you.”

“Thanks, E. I keep trying to convince myself of that, but it’s just

hard knowing I let him down.” Aaron swiped a hand over his red
eyes, took a deep breath, and then gave Elias a small smile. “What
doesn’t kill us only makes us stronger right?”

“Right.” Elias nodded his head. If anyone could relate to Aaron’s

guilt it was him.

Aaron opened the front door and they were greeted by the sound

of Ben and Miles’s son, Colby, screaming his head off. Elias raised
his hands to cover his ears and glanced up at Aaron, who was doing
the same.

“I guess someone’s not happy.” Aaron chuckled as they followed

the sound of the wailing child.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Sweetie, Daddy knows it hurts,” Miles said to his son as he

walked him back and forth across the living room, patting his back as
he held him to his chest. “There, there, pumpkin.”

“What’s the matter with him?” Elias asked as he stepped into the

room.

“Oh, hey!” Miles smiled. “I didn’t hear you guys come in.” Miles

walked over to them, which brought the crying baby even closer. Poor
Miles’s brown hair was standing up in all directions, lines creasing his
youthful face. It looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks.

“As glad as I am to see you.” Aaron winced when Colby let loose

a particular loud, screeching cry. “I need to go and check on Toby.”
Elias watched as Aaron patted Miles on the shoulder then took off for
the stairs.

“Wimp,” Elias yelled after him, then turned back to Miles. “So

what’s wrong with the little guy?”

“Teething.” Miles continued to bounce on the balls of his feet and

pat Colby on the back.

“Already?” Colby was only a little over a month old. That

couldn’t be right.

“That’s what I said, but I guess magical baby vamps grow quicker

than your average human child.” Miles began to sway from side to
side. It seemed to help calm the crying baby.

Now that Elias looked at Colby, the child did look a little bigger

than what was expected of a one month old.

“That’s…” Elias ran a hand through his hair, unable to come up

with anything to say.

“It’s messed up.” Miles shifted again. Colby turned to Elias, his

small face red, and he had drool running down his chin. “I’m freaking
out. My son is growing faster than any of us expected and nobody
knows why. I mean, heck!” Miles’s eyes went wide. “Can’t we just
have some normal with all the crazy going on?”

“Relax, Miles.” For reasons unbeknownst to him, Elias reached

for Colby and took him from his father’s tired arms. “If life was

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normal we’d all be bored. Isn’t that right, you little crying monster?”
Elias held Colby up to his face and made a funny face and the little
guy started to giggle.

“But normal does sound good, don’t you think?” Miles flopped

down on the couch and let his head fall back on the cushions. “I just
want Colby to have as much of a normal life as possible and to be
safe. Is that too much to ask for?” Miles’s eyes welled with tears.

“Nah.” Elias shook his head. He let his bag drop from his shoulder

and sat down next to Miles. He put Colby on his knee and bounced
the little boy. “Normal?” Elias shook his head. “Not sure anyone
every really has a normal life. Right, little man?” He rubbed noses
with Colby. Colby’s skin was super soft and he smelt of baby soap.
The sweetness of it made Elias smile. Colby was so innocent and
when Colby smiled at him, Elias knew without a doubt he’d do
everything in his power to protect the little boy. “And the safe part,
don’t worry about that.” He turned his head to look at Miles.
“Between all of us warriors, Colby will always be protected. That’s a
promise.”

“Thanks, E.” Miles gave him a watery smile. Colby started to

suck on his hand and Miles reached for his son. “I bet Mr. Colby is
hungry. Come on, son. Let’s go eat.”

Elias handed over Colby to his father and smiled as the little guy

waved over Miles’s shoulder at him. That kid seemed way beyond
smart for an average baby. Elias was a little curious as to what Colby
would be like within a year. He was sure his dads were concerned
about that as well.

Elias stood up, grabbed his bag, and left the room. As he walked

past the back sliding glass doors, movement caught his eye. He
stopped and stared. Standing out in the back yard was a tall, lanky
man with skin so pale it almost glowed in the sunlight. The wind blew
at his striking auburn hair, and strands of it escaped his ponytail to
billow around his face.

Elias's Clueless Witch

A slight breath of air seeped through the glass doors and that

smell hit Elias again. He reached for the door knob to keep himself
from falling over. His eyes closed as the spiciness burned at his nose
only to be soothed by the smooth sweetness. Elias’s body felt light as
if floating on air. His blood pumped through his veins, and he could
hear the pounding of his heart in his ears.

The sound of raised voices had Elias opening his eyes. Quinn

stood about ten feet in front of the other man with a gun pointed at his
chest. Elias flung open the door, snapping the lock as he did so.

“Do it or I’m going to pull the trigger!” Quinn snapped at the

man.

“I can’t just make it happen!” The man shouted back. “Please can

we just stop this?”

“One, two, three.” Quinn positioned the gun and fired.
“No!” Elias screamed as he ran forward. His shift overcame his

body and he leaped toward the strange man. With his long hind legs
he was able to reach him in two strides and tackled him to the ground.

The man gasped for air. His green eyes glowed like emeralds and

his mouth hung open.

“Elias?” Quinn asked from above them.
Elias willed his body to change back to human and his now-naked

body lay on top of the other man. His cock had filled and pulsed
between them. Elias’s heart thudded in his chest and every instinct
inside him screamed that this man belonged to him. That they were
mates.

Elias lowered his head toward the other man and met his eyes.

“Mine,” he whispered before his lips connected with the strangers.
Elias shifted closer, using his knees to part the man’s thighs and
moved in to deepen the kiss.

Sparks shot between them and Elias groaned into the kiss.

Nothing had ever felt so good and right. It was like coming home. As
he pulled away, he stared into the glowing green eyes. He licked his
lips, still tasting the man’s kiss.

AJ Jarrett

“Who—” Was all he got out before everything went still.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Chapter Three

“Oh my god, oh my god!” Abel crawled out from under the naked

man who lay on top of him. The guy fell to the ground, still frozen.

Abel wasn’t sure what happened. One minute he was pleading

with Quinn to call it a day then the next thing he noticed was a very
large tawny-colored cat running toward him. Talk about a panic
attack. The beast took him to the ground then before his eyes shifted
into a very stunning-looking man. Dark brown hair, bright blue eyes,
and a tight and compact thin body. It Abel hadn’t been so scared he
would have tried to wrap his body around the other man’s, but fear
took over.

He allowed the man to brush his lips over his own and for one

instant everything became calm. Abel’s mind cleared of all rational
thought. He’d even let the man snuggle closer between his legs where
he felt the man’s answering hardness against his own. It felt really,
really good but then Abel opened his eyes and his brain sparked back
to life. This wasn’t normal. He didn’t go around kissing strange naked
men. Abel flicked his hands and froze the sexy man lying on top of
him.

When he stood up he felt Quinn’s presence beside him. He

glanced over to see that Quinn wasn’t affected by his power. Elias
looked between the naked guy and Quinn and back again. How did he
do it?

“Interesting.” Quinn hummed. “You only froze Elias.” He crossed

his arms over his chest. “So you must be able to use your power when
you feel physically threatened as well. Impressive, since you only

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froze him.” Quinn nudged Elias with the toe of his boot. Elias still
didn't move.

“Elias.” Abel whispered the name and took a closer look at the

man. He let his eyes roam over the top of Elias’s head down his sleek
and slender back until he reached the upper curve of Elias’s ass, and
what a nice ass it was. Compacted and perky. From Abel’s estimate
the man was way shorter than him and had very nice, muscular legs.
He couldn’t help gawking at the man’s exposed body.

The more he studied Elias’s backside he couldn’t help but want to

see more of his front. Thinking it would be in poor taste, Abel didn’t
ask Quinn to help him roll Elias over. He could wait until Elias wasn’t
frozen anymore.

“I wonder what got into him?” Quinn squatted down next to Elias

and rapped his knuckles on the side of his head.

“I’m not sure.” Abel shook his head, not sure if Quinn wanted an

answer from him or not.

“Babe!” Trevor, Quinn’s boyfriend, called out to him. “Are you

done torturing Abel for the day?” As Trevor walked over to him his
eyes strayed to Elias. “What the fuck!” Trevor pointed down at
Elias’s body. “Is he alive?”

“Yeah.” Quinn stood up and kissed Trevor on the lips. “Just

frozen.”

“Really.” Trevor cocked his head to the side and studied the naked

man then looked at Abel. “Why is he naked?”

“Well…He…” Abel brought his hands together and began

twisting his fingers together.

“He shifted, then tackled poor Abel to the ground, then shifted

again and started to maul his face.” Quinn’s inadequate explanation
didn’t seem to do justice for how it all made Abel feel.

“Did he maul his face in human or cougar form?” Trevor

snickered as Abel glared over at him. “Oh relax. I’m just joking.”
Trevor walked around Elias’s body, clicking his tongue against his
teeth. “I wonder.” He glanced over at Abel then to Quinn, grinning

Elias's Clueless Witch

evilly. “You know, I never knew Elias had such a hot ass. I mean,
look at that thing.” Trevor lightly patted Elias’s butt. “So hot!”

Abel watched through narrowed eyes. He bit the inside of his

cheek to keep from reaching out to bat Trevor’s hands away from
Elias. It didn’t seem right for Trevor to be touching Elias without
Elias’s permission.

Yeah, right! You’re jealous.
Abel’s eyes went wide. No, it couldn’t be that. Why in the world

would he be jealous? It just didn’t make any sense.

“Trev, what are you doing?” Quinn asked. His brow creased in

confusion as he stared down at his boyfriend.

“I wonder what the front looks like.” Trevor moved to the side of

Elias’s body, hands posed under his chest to flip him over. Trevor
heaved up. His biceps tensing and Abel couldn’t take it any longer.

“Stop!” He walked around to the other side of Elias’s body. “Stop

that right now.” He pushed his hands flat on Elias’s back, his eyes
falling to half-mast at the simple touch.

“Why?” The right side of Trevor’s mouth pulled up into a half

grin and he stood up. Trevor moved to stand beside Quinn, leaning
into his side.

“Because it’s wrong,” Abel flustered. “He’s not able to say if he’d

allow you to touch him or even look at him.” His jaw clenched tight
and his teeth ground together as he spoke, making his voice come out
harsh sounding.

“Is that all that is bothering you?” Quinn asked, lifting an

eyebrow.

Abel’s nostrils flared as he took a deep breath. His lips were

pinched so tight he couldn’t answer Quinn. He darted his eyes
between the two men. Quinn had a look of concern on his dark face
and Trevor had one of glee. What was that guy so happy about?

“Babe, they’re mates.” Trevor turned to look up at Quinn. “And

Abel here is pretty pissed at me right now. As well as he should be.

AJ Jarrett

I’d beat the last breath out of anyone who dared to touch you.” Trevor
lifted up on his toes to kiss Quinn again.

“Mates?” Abel looked down at where his hands rested on Elias’s

body then snatched them away.

“Yeah, mates.” Trevor squatted down across from Abel on the

other side of Elias’s naked body. “You know, the thing that we are.”
Trevor pointed at Quinn then at his own chest. “That one special
person made just for you. Well, yours is Elias.”

“But…” But what? Abel didn’t know what questions to ask or

where to begin. This all seemed so foreign to him. Sure he’d heard the
other guys talk about their mates but Abel didn’t think he’d ever have
one. Realistically he was an anomaly and shouldn’t have been
allowed to exist, but here he was. Sure, Astrid the half witch half fairy
had one but it was different. Astrid had control of his powers, unlike
Abel. Plus, Astrid’s mother had been a fairy. Fairies were considered
the most pure form of paranormal beings, unable to ever cause harm.
They were unwavering forms of goodness. Sure, Astrid’s father had
been a witch, an evil one at that, but his mother’s wealth of purity
kept Astrid from being evil.

Now Abel’s case was a little different. Abel’s mother being a

witch didn’t necessarily make her evil and it didn’t mean his vampire
father was either. But where fairies didn’t have a choice on what side
they were on, they just were part of the light, witches, shifters, and
vampires were allotted the choice to be good or bad, light or dark. So
naturally Abel assumed as one of his defects of just being born was
that he wouldn’t have a mate just like he couldn’t even control his
powers. He was a clueless witch, and he couldn’t understand why
anyone would want to waste any time on him.

“Just because of the special circumstances behind your existence

doesn’t mean you aren’t allowed to have some of the same benefits as
the rest of us.” Trevor smiled. “Sure, you come from a witch and a
vampire and because of magic you were born, but that doesn’t mean
you can’t learn to control what is already inside of you.” Trevor

Elias's Clueless Witch

shrugged. “And why couldn’t you have a mate? Even witches need
love. Don’t you think you deserve to be loved?”

“Well I just never put a lot of thought into it before.”

Embarrassed, Able looked away. “I just didn’t think with my messed-
up wiring I’d have one waiting for me.”

“Fuck!” Quinn grumbled, rolling his eyes, and then dropped to sit

on the ground. “Listen and listen good because I don’t say nice shit all
the time.” Quinn blew out an annoyed breath. “You didn’t ask to be
born but you were. According to you, your parents were good people.
It’s still up for debate about your dad, though,” Quinn said under his
breath before continuing. “But my point is each paranormal being has
a mate out there in the world. And consider yourself lucky that you
found yours already. Elias here is a good man.”

Abel looked down at the prone body and a small smile tugged at

his upper lip. Could it really be that simple?

“Look, a smile.” Trevor nudged Quinn. After a moment of silence

Trevor asked, “So how is it that you froze only Elias? Usually you
freeze the entire room, not just one person.”

“I’m not sure.” Abel started to nibble on his bottom lip.
“I think if our boy here feels threatened and all his focus is on that

one person or object, he can freeze it. Just like his power is emotion
based. He can only seem to do it when he’s upset or scared. We
definitely need to work on this more.”

“And I’m sure Abel is looking forward to that.” Trevor kicked at

the paintball gun sitting on the ground all but forgotten. “Isn’t there a
better way than to shoot him with paintballs?”

“It’s not the best method but it gets results.” Quinn stood up and

held a hand out for Trevor. “Shall we?”

“We shall.” Trevor hopped up and wrapped an arm around

Quinn’s waist.

Abel’s eyes went wide and he looked between Elias, Quinn, and

then Trevor. “Where are you going?”

“Inside.” Trevor gave him a funny look.

AJ Jarrett

“But what about Elias?” Abel jumped to his feet and gestured

down at the man.

“What about him?” Quinn asked.
“He’s frozen and naked. We can’t just leave him out here.”
“We aren’t.” Trevor smiled from ear to ear. “We’re leaving him in

the capable hands of his mate.”

“But what if I’m not really his mate?” Abel’s hands began to

shake. “What if it’s a mistake?” He really hoped it wasn’t. For some
odd reason he kind of liked Elias, which was ridiculous since he knew
nothing of the guy. But for some reason he wanted to get to know
everything about him.

“I guess you’ll find out soon enough.” Trevor winked at him.

“Just trust your instincts and fate will do the rest.”

Abel’s mouth opened and closed as he watched Trevor and Quinn

leave him alone in the backyard with Elias. He wrapped his arms
around his chest, suddenly cold and shaky.

“Is it true?”
“Oh my god!” Abel jumped back at the sound of the soft voice.

He looked down to see Elias’s head turned toward him. “You nearly
scared the life out of me.”

“Is it true?” Elias asked again, his tone a little bit harsher.
“Is what true?” Abel looked back at the house, thinking he should

ask for help with getting Elias in the house.

“Are you a witch?” Elias’s eyes narrowed as he moved them up

and down Abel’s body.

“Yes,” Abel mumbled. Just his luck he’d have a mate that had a

distaste for his kind. “Is that a problem for you?” Abel took a step
back, preparing to run if the need arose. He’d seen what Elias was and
how fast he could move. Abel didn’t want to take any chances
because he for sure couldn’t count on his powers to work again like
they had before.

“Shit, shit, shit.” Abel watched as Elias lightly banged his head on

the ground. With one last head butt to the ground, Elias rolled over.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Spit began to pool in Abel’s mouth as his eyes raked over Elias’s

fit lean body. Knotted muscles ran the length of his body, bulging and
tensing with each flex of Elias’s arms or legs. When Abel’s eyes
reached the semi erect cock lying slumped on Elias’s thigh, he was
certain he could come in his jeans from that sight alone. Abel lowered
his hands to cover his thickening cock.

“I should go.” Abel thumbed over his shoulder then spun around,

making his escape.

“Run all you want.” Abel stopped and turned to look over his

shoulder at Elias. Elias had sat up and rested his arms over his drawn
up knees. “I’ll find you wherever you go.” The look in Elias’s eyes
sent a chill running down Abel’s spine. “That’s a promise.”

Abel turned back to face the house. His speed walking turned into

a jog then a flat-out run. Once he reached the door, he threw it open
and headed for the stairs. He ignored the voices calling out to him. He
couldn’t think. The quiet of his room called out to him. It was his
sanctuary in this house.

Once he reached his door he ran inside, locked it, and then rested

his back against the cool, hard surface, gasping for air. His life was in
a shambles. He still didn’t have proper control over his powers, dark
warriors could be looking for him, and he just found out he had a
mate. A mate that didn’t look all that pleased to find out Abel was a
witch.

“What am I going to do?”

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Four

It was like some cosmic joke or a cruel prank. He’d finally found

his mate only to discover the guy was like some fucked-up hybrid.
What were the odds of that happening?

No more than a month ago he’d vowed to eliminate the world of

vamps and witches and now he finds out he’s mated to an offspring of
the two. How is that even possible?

Elias stood up and dusted the grass off his ass then headed for the

back door. He stepped inside and snatched up his bag, pulling a pair
of sweats from it. Once he was dressed he made his way toward the
sound of voices coming from the kitchen. When he walked through
the door and everyone turned to look at him. Carlos, Josh, Miles, and
Trevor sat around the table watching as baby Colby played with his
food.

“Oh hey, there you are.” Quinn came around through the doorway

on the opposite side of the room. “Ben would like to speak to you.”

“I bet he does.” Elias walked across the room, stopping to rub a

hand through Colby’s silky soft hair. He said greetings to the others as
he left the room and followed Quinn down the hall toward Ben’s
office. “What’s going on, Quinn?”

“I’ll let Ben fill you in.” Quinn knocked then opened the door.
Inside the room, Ben sat behind a desk. A laptop was sitting to the

side and a map lay across his desk. His long blond hair hung loosely
at his neck and it looked like he’d been running his hands through it.
Ben’s bloodshot eyes looked up at him and he gave a weak smile.
“Hey, E. Welcome home.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Ben.” Elias sat down in the chair in front of Ben’s desk. He was

doing his best to reign in his temper. It wasn’t Ben’s fault he was the
fated mate to a witch, a gorgeous handsome witch that he wanted to
kiss again. Elias clenched his fist tight and took several deep breaths.
His nails had lengthened and he could feel the sharp pinch as they dug
into his palm.

“Quinn told me about what happened in the yard.” Ben chuckled.

“I guess a congratulations is in order.”

“Ben, from what I overheard he’s a witch-vampire hybrid.” His

head shook a little, feeling stupid for saying this out loud. It just
wasn’t probable or he would have thought it wasn’t, but that was
before he’d met Astrid. “How is this even possible?”

“Abel’s mother was a witch and his father a vampire.” Ben tapped

his fingers on his desk. “From what Abel has told us his mother was a
good witch but did in fact use magic to become pregnant.”

Elias rolled his eyes. Witches using magic for their own personal

gain. Not surprising.

“The spell wasn’t real clear with who could be the father of her

baby. It just said the first man she slept with would be able to
impregnate her.”

“And it just happened to be a vampire.” Elias groaned. He sat

forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “So he’s a witch and a
vampire?”

“No.” Ben shook his head. “He’s a witch. He takes after his

mother’s side. From what we can assume his father was just a sperm
donor. He wasn’t even aware of the spell she’d casted.”

“But he looks a lot like his dad,” Quinn said from where he sat

next to Elias.

“His dad? How do you know?” Elias turned his attention to

Quinn. Quinn didn’t look his way, just kept staring at Ben. “What is
it? Who’s his father?”

“It’s a little complicated.” Ben splayed his hands on his desk.
“I think I need to know, since the guy is my mate.”

AJ Jarrett

“Asher.” Ben looked up then to meet Elias’s stunned eyes.
“Asher, as in Asher Guillory? The man behind this war? The guy

we think is more than likely responsible for your father’s
disappearance and the destruction of the council?” Elias couldn’t
believe his ears. This sounded ludicrous but what was even crazier
was the fact they were letting Abel stay at the warriors compound.

“One in the same, but after talking with Abel, I don’t think it’s all

that simple.” Ben sat back in his chair and put his arms behind his
head. “I’m still not sure I believe it all myself but some other things
have been brought to my attention that kind of explain a lot.”

“Like?” Elias waved a hand in the air. He was desperate for

answers. Abel was his mate. After that one kiss Elias could feel the
pulsing bond between them. There was no denying it and he wouldn’t
but he’d also like some answers as to what the fuck he’d gotten
himself into.

Ben told Elias about Carlos, a fellow warrior who was also a

witch, and suspicions about Benedict being in love with Asher.
Benedict kept pictures of Asher and he was always so hell bent on
finding Asher. He also said that Abel wholeheartedly believed his
father to be a good man and had been on the run because the council
had labeled him the enemy without even giving him the chance to tell
his side of the story. Ben said it was obvious to anyone that met Abel
that the man was good, not a dark warrior in the making, just a man
looking to put his life back together.

Abel was a rare breed and since his mother was a witch that broke

the laws of nature by becoming pregnant with a vampires offspring,
intentional or not, it didn’t matter. She paid the ultimate price with her
life and Abel wasn’t faring much better. He was in fact a witch, just
one that didn’t have any control of his powers or had the instincts to
sniff out other paranormals. In essence he was like a human, an
immortal human.

“We are trying to work on strengthening his powers but it’s not

been easy,” Quinn said.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Is that why you were shooting at him in the back yard?” Elias

rubbed a hand over his eyes. Stress and exhaustion were making his
eyelids droop. It was like his brain was on overload and all he really
wanted to do was go find Abel and fuck his brains out.

“Yeah.” Quinn nodded. “We’ve figured out his powers stems

from his emotions, pain, fear, anger, stuff like that.”

“I guess you can say he’s clueless to his paranormal side,” Ben

explained. “His mother died when he was thirteen. Asher ceased all
communication with Abel in order to keep him safe from dark
warriors, so that only left Phillip, his mother’s human lover. Phillip
raised Abel as a human. That’s all he really knows, so we’re trying to
help him control and harness his powers in order to be able to protect
himself. And I’m hoping with this new development of you being his
mate that might come in handy.”

“How so?” Elias sat back in his chair, trying to see where Ben was

going with all this.

“You know how when two paranormal beings come together they

become stronger? Well we’re kind of hoping the same happens for
Abel. Without control of his powers he’s a sitting duck. If it wasn’t
for Carlos, Josh, Garrett, and Lachlan’s help he’d never made it out of
San Francisco. Dark Warriors are searching for him and my guess it’s
for the same reason as us, to find Asher.”

“Makes since.” Elias shifted uneasily in his chair. “But how do

you think Abel will feel about all this? The guy ran from me, Ben.”

“Only because this is all new to him,” Quinn answered. “He

doesn’t understand what’s happening to his emotions and urges. He’s
just scared, E.”

“I understand that but I won’t force him to do anything he doesn’t

want to. Hell, man, I’m still trying to wrap my brain around the fact
that I’m mated to a person who comes from the two things I hate most
in this world, vampires and witches. No offence, guys.”

“None taken.” Quinn smiled at him.

AJ Jarrett

It was like having a war raging inside himself. He wanted Abel,

even craved him, but he still felt like it’d be sleeping with the enemy.
Sure, he was friends with witches and vamps, but he didn’t know
anything about Abel. Maybe the guy was playing them all, but deep
down Elias didn’t believe that. Abel was an innocent and an innocent
that now belonged to him whether he liked it or not.

“The question isn’t whether Abel wants you. Its whether you want

him and are willing to fight for him.” Ben tucked the fly-away hairs
around his face behind his ears. “We find love when we least expect it
but I think this might be good for both of you. Abel needs to gain the
courage he needs to survive and you need help getting over Cason’s
death. You’re mates and that means you can help each other heal. Do
you think you can do that, Elias? Can you be the mate Abel needs?”

He understood what Ben was saying and he wanted to be that guy.

The one that helped Abel overcome his fears. But most of all he
wanted his own heart to heal. Even now he could see the sparkle in
Abel’s dark green eyes and Elias couldn’t help but smile. It wouldn’t
take much for him to fall in love with Abel, he just hoped Abel let
him.

“I’m willing to give it all I have, Ben.” Elias smiled. It felt good to

have a new mission that didn’t involve death and violence.

“Good, now why don’t you go and get to know him better? He’s

kind of shy,” Ben said in a low voice. “So be gentle.”

“Not a problem.” Elias stood up, a plan already forming in his

mind. As he reached the door, he stopped to look at Quinn. “What’s
his power?” In the midst of everything going on he hadn’t thought to
ask.

“You don’t remember?” Quinn started to laugh.
Elias’s brow creased and he shook his head. “No. Why should I? I

only just met him.”

“He has the ability to freeze things, as in time, objects and

people.” Quinn gave him a pointed look. Elias’s eyes widened and his

Elias's Clueless Witch

jaw slackened. Quinn nodded his head. “He froze you out there,
buddy. Better get used to it.”

“Son of a bitch.” Elias groaned. He opened the door and shut it

behind him, hearing Ben and Quinn laughing at his obvious despair.

How in the fuck was he going to get to know his mate if the guy

could freeze him at any given moment? Quinn and Ben did say Abel
didn’t have complete control of his powers so maybe lady luck was in
his corner for once.

Elias took the stairs up to the rooms. He sniffed out the room that

was Abel’s, the spicy yet sweet smell, like chocolate-covered
jalapenos.

When he reached Abel’s room, Elias shouldered his bag higher

and stood there with his hand raised in the air preparing to knock, but
he held back. What was he going to say exactly? He hadn’t been
overly friendly with Abel the last time they spoke, but who could
blame him? He’d just discovered his mate was a witch. Even now he
was still a little creeped out by who the guy’s parents were. Abel was
the son of Asher Guillory. Elias had only ever heard bad things about
Asher and it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

“I can do this,” Elias whispered to himself. He raised his hand

again and this time let his knuckles rap on the hard surface. A few
seconds went by and nothing. No answering call or sounds coming
from the room. So Elias knocked again, harder this time. Still nothing.
The longer he stood out there the madder he got. Was Abel even in
there? “Hello!” Elias called out as he knocked again, causing the door
to shake on its hinges.

“I can hear you, but will you please just go away?” Abel’s soft

and delicate-sounding voice met Elias ears. The sound was so light
and airy, had Elias not had excellent hearing he’d have missed it.

“Uh, no.” Elias braced his hands on either side of the door. “You

can’t avoid me forever.”

“I bet I can,” Abel mumbled, probably thinking Elias wouldn’t be

able to hear him.

AJ Jarrett

“I heard that!” Elias let his head fall forward to thump against the

door. “Come on, Abel, we need to talk.” Elias rubbed his head from
side to side, scratching his forehead on the wood door. “Please, just
let me in.”

Nothing but silence met his request. Elias opened his eyes and

took a step back from the door. He could hear shuffling of feet
coming closer to the door but the lock never gave way. Elias looked
down and could see the shadow of feet pass before the door.

Elias understood that this was all new for Abel, but it was new for

him, too. Why was Abel so afraid to talk to him? Didn’t Abel want to
grow stronger and be able to control his powers? But Elias thought for
a moment. Maybe Abel doesn’t know that finding his mate might help
him out. Together they could grow stronger, but to do that Elias had
to get Abel to agree to the blood-sex-magic ritual, which might freak
a newbie like Abel out.

Fuck!
“Okay, I get it. This is new to you so you need some time to

process.” Elias took a deep breath, fighting every instinct in his body
to break down the damn door. “I’ll give you some space but not
much, Abel. You can’t run from this and neither can I.” Elias raised
his hand to the door and lightly caressed it. “Sweet dreams, Abe.”

Elis turned around and headed for the room he’d dumped his stuff

in before his last mission. On his way there he saw Astrid standing in
an open doorway. Elias waved at the shy man and Astrid smiled and
put a finger to his lips and waved for Elias to follow him. Elias
shrugged and followed Astrid down the hallway back toward Abel’s
bedroom.

Astrid opened the door to the left of Abel’s and held it open for

Elias to go inside. He flipped on the light to see all his belongings
were sitting on the large bed.

“I heard about you and Abel,” Astrid said softly, stepping closer

to Elias. “I took it upon myself to move your things closer to him.”
Astrid glanced at the wall that Elias’s room shared with Abel’s. “I can

Elias's Clueless Witch

only speak for myself but when I first saw Klaus, it didn’t matter how
frightened I was. I still wanted to be near my mate so I thought it’d be
a good thing for the two of you to room next door to each other. Just
until Abel is more comfortable with all this. It might help just having
you close to him.”

“Thanks, Astrid.” Elias thought it was a good idea and was happy

that Astrid had thought of it. In fact, Elias could feel himself already
relaxing knowing his mate was just behind the wall. “This is a great
idea.”

“Thanks.” Astrid’s pale cheeks flushed a bright crimson. “I’m

sure once Abel absorbs all this he’ll be fine. He’s known his whole
life he was different but now here with us he’s being forced to use a
power he’s never had to before.” Astrid gave him an encouraging
grin. “Trust me, it’s not easy, but hopefully he can gain strength from
you and you from him.”

“Me? I’m strong enough on my own,” Elias snapped before he

thought better of it.

“Yes you are, but this can’t be easy for you either.” Astrid’s eyes

darted toward Abel’s room. “Your life hasn’t been perfect and you’ve
suffered losses of your own. What I mean is, maybe together you can
become one whole and happy person. Does that make since?” Astrid’s
brow furrowed and he sucked in his bottom lips and nibbled at it.

In a weird way, yeah, it did. Elias smiled at Astrid and reached out

and gave his hand a tight squeeze then released it. “It sure does, and
you’re right, Astrid. Maybe this is something we both need.”

“Good. Glad I could help.” Astrid blushed again and he waved,

then hustled out of Elias’s door.

Elias tossed his bag on the floor, then shoved the other bags and

boxes to the other side of his bed and lay down. He looked over at the
connecting wall and wondered what Abel was doing in there.

Not wanting to lie in bed and stare at the wall all night, Elias got

up and went into his bathroom. He took a quick shower, grabbed a
pair of knit shorts from his bag, and got into bed. Once his head hit

AJ Jarrett

the pillow, his muscles loosened and he sank deeper into the cool
sheets. Just being close to Abel was helping relax.

“Good night, Abel,” Elias said around a yawn.
Elias rolled over and tucked one arm under his pillow and the

other under his chin. He needed some sleep, and then maybe he could
come up with an idea to help his mate accept what was meant to be.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Chapter Five

Abel felt like an idiot standing behind his door like some little

scared kid while Elias was out there. He should had been man enough
to open the door and talk things out with the guy, but Abel couldn’t
make his hands work, or even his throat for that matter. Seeing the
disgust and hatred on Elias’s face when Abel confirmed he was in fact
a witch was still too fresh in his mind. He wasn’t sure why Elias
didn’t like witches and being an adult, Abel should have asked him
and talked to him about it, but no. Abel took off. It was the one thing
he’d gotten good at over his sixty-three years, running.

“What am I going to do?” Abel whispered into the darkness. He

couldn’t deny his attraction toward Elias and he didn’t want to. The
memory of that one kiss made his toes curl and his heart melt. How
was it even possible to feel so strongly about a person he’d just met?

Realistically he knew it had to be the mating bond thing everyone

else kept talking about, but it felt stronger, more deeper than that. But
maybe that was exactly the feeling the others had been describing to
him. Maybe this was a good thing to be happening to him. Abel had
lived a lonely life since Phillip had died. In order to protect himself,
he’d kept himself closed off from the rest of the world, only taking
pleasure from painting and creating art for others to enjoy.

Being of the nervous sort was part of Abel’s problem. He didn’t

trust easily and he was socially awkward. The only time he’d felt any
sort of confidence was when he’d met Josh. At the time he didn’t
know Josh had a mate but it didn’t matter. For the first time in his life
Abel had opened himself up to another person. He wasn’t
disappointed that Josh and Carlos were mates. He liked them both, a

AJ Jarrett

lot. They were his friends and helped saved him when Warriors of the
Dark came looking for him.

Abel had gone his whole life without feeling any sort of romantic

love and wasn’t really sure how to accept or give it. He’d read
thousands of books about people falling in love and he was a sucker
for a happy ending. Secretly he’d always wished for that special kind
of love for himself, hence why he was a sixty-three-year-old virgin.

The mere thought of sex made Abel’s hands shake. When he was

a teenager he’d come close a couple of times but he’d always backed
out at the last minute. The two boyfriends he’d had both dumped him
and called him a prude. Abel couldn’t help it. He couldn’t imagine
giving such a big piece of himself to another person if it wasn’t true
love and Abel felt safe in saying he hadn’t felt that way about anyone.
Well, not until he’d met Elias. Abel wasn’t foolish enough to say it
was love but it had the potential to be something great.

Abel curled up on his side in bed and pulled the comforter tight

around his body. He smiled at the thought of possibly sharing that part
of himself with Elias. A calming peace settled over him, something he
hadn’t felt since leaving San Francisco. His sheets were soft and
warm from his body heat and Abel was able to sink into the comfort
and let his eyes fall shut.

“Ash, hurry up!” A tall man with flowing blond hair called out.
Abel stood still. He was in some sort of barn, maybe a stable. The

sound of running feet had him taking a step back to see who was
coming. The tall blond held his arms open and another man, with
deep auburn hair, jumped into them. The blond man wrapped his arms
around the other man and held him tight, lifting him off his feet.

“I’ve missed you so much, Benny.” The man named Ash kissed

Benny on the lips.

Abel took a step closer. There was something familiar about these

young men. They couldn’t be more than eighteen years old. And by
the way they were dressed, not even from this century. Abel looked
down at his clothes and realized he was still in his pajamas. What’s

Elias's Clueless Witch

going on? He pinched his arm but it didn’t hurt. He surmised that he
was dreaming, but what about?

“I’ve missed you to but I couldn’t get away. My father has grown

suspicious as of lately, questioning me every time I try to leave the
estate.” Benny set Ash back onto his feet. “I worry he suspects
something is between you and I.”

“Don’t be foolish, Benny.” Ash pressed his palms to Benny’s

chest and slowly started to lower them. “We’ve been way too careful
for anyone to suspect a thing.” Ash leaned forward to kiss at Benny’s
neck, licking and nibbling the tan flesh.

“Asher, stop it!” Benny took a step back, holding Ash at a

distance. “Don’t you hear what I am telling you?”

Asher? Abel took another step closer and peered at the two men. It

couldn’t be but it was. It was his father. A young Asher stood with
pleading eyes looking into Benny’s, who Abel just realized had to be
Benedict. He’d never met the man personally but he’d met his son,
Ben, and they were a spitting imagine of one another.

Tears welled up in Ash’s eyes and fell down his pale cheek. “I do

but it matters not.” Ash lifted his arms to wrap around Benny’s neck,
bringing their foreheads together. “I love you, Benny, and I want to
be with you for now and always.”

“Ash, you cannot say such foolish things.” Benny rubbed his

hands up and down Ash’s back. “We cannot wish for things that will
never be, my love. The world we live in is not understanding to such
things of this nature.”

“Then let’s run away.” Ash’s tears fell harder and Abel could feel

a stray tear leave his eye at his father’s obvious distress. “We can
leave tonight.”

“You know I cannot do that, my love.” Benny kissed Ash on the

forehead. “I’m needed here to take over when my father can no
longer lead us. I have to stay.”

“No, you want to stay!” Ash pushed away from Benny and put his

back to him. “You said you loved me but it was just a lie, wasn’t it?”

AJ Jarrett

Abel wanted to rush over and punch Benny in the face and

comfort his father. Benny was being so callous to how Ash was
feeling. It was obvious that Ash was in love with Benny. Could he not
see that?

“It was not a lie, Ash.” Benny came up behind Ash and wrapped

his thick arms around him, kissing the back of his neck. “You know I
love you more than anything in this world.”

“But it’s not enough, is it?” Ash whispered as he looked over his

shoulder at Benny.

“I’m not sure, my love. I just know I cannot live without you.”

Benny turned Ash around until they stood chest to chest. “Please let
us not fight.” Ash let Benny pull him into a deep and passionate kiss.

Abel’s cheeks heated at witnessing such a thing. Granted, this was

a younger version of his dad before Abel had ever been conceived,
but still, it was his dad. So yeah, totally gross watching him and
Benny getting it on. Abel closed his eyes and willed himself to wake
up because what started as a dream was quickly turning into a
nightmare. The gruff moans and cries of pleasure were making his
stomach turn.

Abel came to with a start, gasping for breath. He looked around

his room and caught the sunlight creeping through the shimmery
drapes. Abel flopped back on his bed and stared up at the ceiling.

“That was just too weird.” Abel rubbed his hands over his eyes,

clearing away the sleep.

As much as he tried not to, the dream kept replaying in Abel’s

head. Something about it seemed off. It wasn’t like a typical dream, it
was more like he was watching some else’s dream, or was it a
memory? Abel wasn’t sure but he couldn’t dwell on it because if he
did he didn’t think he’d be able to look at Ben the same way again. If
what he saw in his dream really happened then Ben’s dad was a dick.
It was clear that Ash had been deeply in love with Benny but it didn’t
look as if that love went both ways. Ash had been willing to run away
with Benny but Benny wouldn’t do the same for Ash.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Stop it, Abel.” Abel threw the blankets off his body and moved

to sit on the edge of his bed. “It was just a very weird dream. One I
hope I don't ever have again.”

Abel headed to his bathroom and took a shower. He thought more

about his dream, about how his and Ben’s fathers had been lovers in
it. Over the past two weeks he’d overheard bits and pieces from
Carlos, Quinn, and Ben about how it might be possible that Benedict
had feelings for Asher. It was all just speculation but after the dream
he just had, Abel wasn’t so sure. Maybe somehow it was all
connected. Could it be that this was part of his powers? If it was he
was better off keeping it to himself for a little while longer. At least
until he could control it better.

Abel brushed his teeth, then walked back into his bedroom and

got dressed. It was a new day and more practicing time with Quinn.
Abel wasn’t looking forward to that. As he opened his door he
wondered what type of torture Quinn had planned for today.

“Morning.”
“Holy heck!” Abel jumped back against his door, hitting it hard.
“Shit.” Elias rushed forward and rested his hands on Abel’s

shoulders, steading him. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Well, don’t get too excited.” Heat crawled up Abel’s neck and he

smiled down at Elias. Elias wore a tight fitting red T-shirt with a pair
of well-worn denim jeans and sneakers. His wet hair was combed to
the side off his face, letting his bright blues eyes shine like a homing
device, pulling Abel closer. “It doesn’t take much to frighten me.”

“Good to know.” Elias squeezed his shoulders one last time then

let go. “So what are your plans for the day?”

“I’m sure Quinn’s got something fun planned for me.” Abel

stopped mid-step and looked down at Elias. “Were you waiting
outside my door? Are you like stalking me?”

“No.” Elias shook his head. “I’m rooming right next door to you. I

guess you could say we’re neighbors.” Elias smiled proudly up at
him.

AJ Jarrett

“Really? Since when?” In the two weeks Abel had been there, that

room had been empty and according to Miles it was still vacant and
one of the reasons why Abel chose his room. Not that he was trying to
avoid everyone, but he did like his quiet time.

“Since I got back and discovered you’re my mate.” Elias stopped

walking and reached out and grabbed onto Abel’s hand. The warmth
in the calloused palm sent a shiver down Abel’s spine. A jolt of
electricity seemed to flow from Abel into him and Abel swayed closer
to Elias. “I really think we should find time to discuss this, don’t
you?” Elias took a step closer, closing the gap between them. He very
slowly lifted his other hand and placed his warm palm at the back of
Abel’s neck and gently pulled him down toward him until their lips
were only an inch apart.

Stop! Abel’s brain screamed at him. His dick strained against his

zipper and his mind was a bundle of confused feelings and thoughts.
Things were moving too fast.

Abel squeezed his eyes shuts and all at once Elias’s hands stopped

moving on his neck. He slowly opened one eye then the other to see
Elias frozen in place.

“Not again.” Abel unwound his fingers from Elias’s grip and

stepped out and under his other hand. He hurried down the hallway,
glancing over his shoulder every few steps. Boy, Elias was going to
be pissed. But it wasn’t as if Abel had done it on purpose. Things
were just moving too fast, and he needed to get away and in doing
that he froze his mate, again.

“Hey, Abel, you ready to get started?” Quinn asked as Abel came

rushing down the stairs.

“Yeah, sure, let’s go.” Abel herded Quinn toward the back door.
“Is everything all right?” Quinn cast him a wary eye.
“Never been better.” Abel shut the door once he finally had Quinn

through it. “So what’s on the agenda today?” Abel clapped his hands
together, trying his best not to look nervous, but his eyes kept straying

Elias's Clueless Witch

back toward the house. “More paintballs or will it be actual bullets
today?”

Quinn looked from Abel then back toward the house. He

scratched at his chin but didn’t ask Abel anything else. “Nothing like
that.” Quinn started off toward the back of the property and motioned
for Abel to follow him. “I got something else planned for you today.”

After walking for about twenty minutes, Abel found himself

looking at an obstacle course of some sort. A high wooden beam ran
from one side to the other. The drop off wasn’t too far down but a
huge pool of mud covered the ground. And in the air hanging from
the trees were large punching bags that sat on a wooden catwalk. This
didn’t look like fun at all.

“I’m not going to like this, am I?” Abel looked up at Quinn’s

grinning face.

“Probably not but hey, I really didn’t expect you to.”

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Six

“Motherfucker!” A deep growl escaped his throat as Elias ran

down the stairs. God only knew how long he’d been standing up there
frozen in place looking like a complete dork.

The last thing he remembered was pulling Abel in close for a kiss

then bam, nothing. That little witch used his powers on him again! On
his mate. Didn’t them being mates qualify to exclude him from being
affected by that godforsaken power?

“Yo, E!” Trevor said around a laugh as Elias came into the

kitchen. “You got to see this.”

Elias narrowed his eyes at the annoying little vamp and walked

over to him. Trevor had his phone out and clicked on the screen.
Elias’s eyes went wide when he saw a picture of himself frozen in
place. His eyes were at half-mast and his lips were parted, leaning in
for a kiss.

“That little shit,” Elias grumbled.
“That power of his is quite funny, don’t you think?” Trevor didn’t

hold back his body-shaking laughter. “I mean, look at you. Going in
for a kiss but denied.”

“Trevor, you’re an asshole.” Elias turned around and headed for

the back door leading outside.

“Oh come on, E. Don’t be like that.” Trevor stepped in Elias’s

path, stopping him. “I’m sorry and don’t mean to laugh, but that shit
upstairs”—Trevor pointed his finger upward—“was funny.” Trevor
took a deep breath to sober himself. “Listen, if anyone knows what
you’re going through it’d be me. Quinn avoided me for over a year,
even had a spell casted to avoid finding love. Just put yourself in

Elias's Clueless Witch

Abel’s shoes. He’s in a new place with people he’s just met and then
to top it off he finds out he’s got a mate. Has to be a shit ton for him
to deal with right now.”

“Doesn’t anyone give a fuck how all this is affecting me?” It was

getting real annoying how everyone kept feeling sympathy for Abel,
but what about him? This was just as much a shock to Elias.

“Sure we do, but you’re not some skittish witch one step away

from having a nervous breakdown,” Trevor said bluntly. “You need to
go slow with him, woo him if you will.”

“Woo him?” Elias’s face scrunched up at that.
“You know, romance the guy, go slow. Something tells me he

doesn’t have a lot of experience if you know what I mean.” Trevor
winked.

Elias never thought about that. That could be why Abel kept

running from him and freezing him. They had just met only a day ago,
maybe to Abel, Elias was moving too fast.

“Okay, I can do that.” An evil grin tugged at the corners of Elias’s

upper lip.

Trevor narrowed his eyes at him and crossed his arms over his

chest. “What are you planning?”

“I might go slowly on the whole mate thing but in training a

fellow warrior I don’t have to hold anything back.” Elias walked
around Trevor and opened the door.

“E, please say you aren’t going to do something stupid.”
Elias ignored Trevor as he followed his mate’s scent toward the

far end of the property. No, he wasn’t going to do something stupid,
more like ingenuous. Obviously his mate was shy and Elias wouldn’t
be sharing a bed with Abel anytime soon, but he could at least get to
know the man better. He could take baby steps with Abel until his
mate felt more comfortable around him and hopefully that would lead
to Abel not freezing him anymore, because Elias was really starting to
hate that.

AJ Jarrett

But Elias wasn’t a saint and he really felt the need to let out some

of his frustration, and what better way than to volunteer to help Quinn
with Abel’s training? And knowing Quinn like he did, the warrior had
something fun and painful in store for Abel, and how could Elias not
want to lend a helping hand?

“Holy fuck.” Elias’s eyes went wide as he approached a crop of

trees. Quinn stood on the edge of a small drop off talking to Abel who
stood, shaking on a wooden beam that led to the other side of the drop
off.

“Stop panicking, Abel,” Quinn hollered out to Abel. “I’m not

going to release the bags until you’ve gotten use to the beam, okay?”

“Okay.” Elias could hear the fear in Abel’s voice.
Abel had his back to Elias, so he was able to walk up unnoticed by

his mate to stand next to Quinn. “This looks like fun.” Elias peered
over the edge to see the drop off wasn’t that far but a shit ton of
swampy-looking mud filled the open gap.

“Oh, hey, E.” Quinn’s face softened when he looked at Elias. “It

does, doesn’t it?” His upper lip twitched until he was grinning. “I
figured I’d change up tactics from shooting him with paintballs, so I
had this constructed. My theory is it’ll help Abel in case of a fight.
With so much going on he needs to be able to react while still being
able to control his power without freezing everyone in a ten mile
radius.” Quinn’s eyes lit up as he explained.

“Makes since.” Elias crossed his arms over his chest. “Need any

help?” Elias smirked as he eyed the punching bags up in the trees.

“Sure.” Quinn patted him on the back. “When he’s ready you can

release the bags while I help give him instructions.”

“Sweet.” Elias clapped his hands together, rubbing them together.
“Are you sure this won’t be a conflict of interest for you? I mean

he is your mate.” Quinn glanced over at Abel, who had finally made it
to the other side.

“Oh, I think this will be good for both of us.” Elias shrugged.

“Call it a way of getting to know one another better. Should I go on

Elias's Clueless Witch

up?” He started to walk toward the steps leading to the platform
where the bags sat.

“Yeah, go ahead.” Quinn had an uneasy look on his face.
Elias hustled up the steps, the wood creaking under his sneakers.

He edged around the first bag, avoiding pulling on the rope that had
been tied to the top of the bag. Elias made it to the center of the
catwalk before Abel spotted him. Abel’s eyes rounded and he stopped
moving.

“What’s he doing here?” Abel shouted out to Quinn.
“He’s going to help us.” Quinn stomped a foot on the beam,

causing Abel to waver back and forth. “I want you to focus on what I
tell you as you dodge the bags and hopefully freeze a few before they
reach you.”

“What?” Abel lowered to his knees, grasping the wood plank with

both hands. “Are you insane?” Abel shot a worried look up at Elias.

Elias instincts were screaming at him to alleviate his mate’s fears,

but his mate needed this. Abel needed to learn to be able to protect
himself in the face of danger. And to be quite honest, Elias was
looking forward to knocking Abel off the beam and into the mud.

“Abel, trust me,” Quinn spoke up, pulling Abel’s attention back to

him. “You are on the dark warriors’ radar. If for some reason they
attack you need to be able to protect yourself in case one of us aren’t
there to do it for you. Do you understand that?”

Abel slowly nodded his head. “I do, but I’m still afraid.”
“At one time we all were,” Elias spoke up, speaking over

whatever Quinn was about to say. “But that’s why we train. We need
to be strong enough to protect ourselves because when it comes down
to it you can only rely on your skills to keep you alive in a battle. This
right now might look scary and you might hate it, but it will prepare
you.” Elias looked over to Quinn, who had a small smile on his face.
“Quinn’s the best warrior I know. If anyone can prepare you for a
fight it’s that guy right there.”

AJ Jarrett

Abel’s chin trembled as he darted his eyes back to Quinn and

slowly stood up on wobbling legs. “Okay, but what do you get out of
helping me?”

Elias’s smile reached his ears and he said, “This.” Elias pushed

the bag off the ledge, sending it swinging right in front of where Abel
stood.

“Are you crazy?” Abel dropped back to his knees, clinging to the

beam. He yelped as it swung back around.

“Abel, stand up,” Quinn ordered. “If you don’t want to get hit by

that bag then freeze it. Simple as that.”

“But what if I can’t?”
“Then it’s a mud bath for you.” Quinn stood up and pointed to

Elias. “Release another bag.”

Elias winced as he set loose another heavy bag heading straight

for Abel. Abel braced himself and took the hit right in the side, falling
off the beam. A loud thudding smack sound filled the air as Abel
landed. Mud flew up to splatter on the wood plank.

“Abe, you okay?” Elias bent at the knees, preparing to jump off

the ledge and into the mud if his mate needed help.

“I’m fine.” Abel stood up and reached for the beam and pulled

himself up. Sloppy, chunky mud covered him from head to toe, and it
took everything in Elias not to bust out laughing.

“Why didn’t you freeze the bag?” Quinn questioned Abel. “I bet

that mud doesn’t taste too good. I’d think right now would be a good
time to step up your game, little witch.”

“Easy for you to say.” Abel scooped the mud out of his eyes and

flung it to the ground.

“It is because I’m not the one going to be swimming in mud all

day. E, another bag.”

Abel looked up at him with narrowed eyes but there was nothing

Elias could do. It was for Abel’s own good. “Sorry, dude.” Off went
another bag.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Abel dodged this one and slid but caught himself just in time for

another bag to swing back in his direction, sending him over the edge
again. This time Elias did laugh. It was going to be a long day for
Abel if he didn’t get his shit together. Once the sun got higher in the
afternoon sky that mud would be an itchy, sticky mess.

Abel banged his fist on the wood beam then managed to climb

back up, but he wasn’t paying attention. The bag that had knocked
him off was heading straight toward him, but with Abel’s back to it he
couldn’t see it coming and boom! Abel went flying off on the other
side. “Damn it!”

“You getting mad yet?” Quinn asked Abel as he made his way

back up on his little platform, being careful of the swinging bags.

“Yes,” Abel said in a low whisper, shoulders stiff as he righted

himself.

“Then do something about it.” Quinn waved his hand and Elias

released another bag.

Elias did as he was told and pushed off another. Abel slid forward,

just barely missing it. Elias reached for another back as it swung back
toward him, then shoved it hard in Abel’s direction. All the while
Quinn called out suggestion on how Abel should deflect the bags but
Abel wasn’t a quick study and continued to fall into the mud. Elias’s
cheeks started to ache from laughing so hard.

“I think you are in enjoying this too much.” Abel turned to glare

up at Elias.

“You know?” Elias squinted an eye and nodded his head. “I kind

of am.” As he said the words, he let go of the bag he was holding,
sending it straight for Abel.

Abel’s eyes went wide, then narrowed to slits, and he raised his

hands and flicked them at the bag and just like that it froze.

“I did it!” Abel’s face lit up and he smiled up at Elias. “Did you

see that?” He pointed to the bag then looked at Quinn.

“Very good, young grasshopper, now let’s see if you can do it

again.” Quinn motioned for Elias to push off another.

AJ Jarrett

Abel was still gawking at the frozen bag and didn’t see that Elias

had released another. The bag hit Abel in the side, sending him over
the edge. This time, though, when Abel climbed back on the beam, he
didn’t look mad but determined. Abel slowly made his way around
another bag, ducking to dodge it, then raised a hand to freeze another
that came at him. When he got to the end nearest Quinn without being
told, Abel turned around and headed back out to the other side.

“I feel like this is payback for you,” Abel said as he froze a bag as

it swung in front of his face. He held on to it as he swung around to
the other side, glancing up at Elias.

“Why would you say that?” Elias canted his head to the side and

pushed off another bag, hard and fast, hitting his target dead on. Abel
tumbled over the side.

Abel popped up, spitting mud out of his mouth. “Because of this!”

He smacked his hands on the beam. “I didn’t mean to freeze you last
night or this morning. It just happened.” Abel pulled himself into a
sitting position on the beam. “I’m not used to strangers kissing me.”

“I’m not a stranger.” Elias’s claws lengthened and dug into the

plastic lining of the bag.

“Well you are to me,” Abel said softly as he looked up at Elias.
Elias’s anger got the better of him and he kicked the bag off the

ledge toward Abel’s back. Abel saw it coming and raised a hand and
froze it a good two feet away from him.

As the minutes ticked by, Abel started to improve. If he didn’t

freeze the bag he reacted by spinning or ducking out of the way to
avoid the hit. Elias was rather impressed with his mate’s ability and
the fact that Abel never gave up.

Two hours had passed without Quinn stopping to give Abel a

break. Elias could see exhaustion creasing the lines around Abel’s
eyes and mouth but he never once whined or complained. Abel’s
shoulders started to droop and his clothes looked as if they weighed a
ton, pulling down on Abel’s thin body, yet Abel still didn’t say a
word.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Quinn, maybe we should give him a break.” Elias motioned

toward Abel.

“I don’t need one,” Abel grumbled as he turned around and

headed in the other direction.

“Oh come on, man.” Elias pointed at Abel. “You can barely hold

yourself up.”

“Oh that’s funny.” Abel rolled his eyes. “Now you care.”
“Abel—”
“Save it,” Abel interrupted.
“Abel, do you want to break for a few minutes?” Quinn asked.
“No, I’m fine. Let’s keep going,” Abel said with determination in

his voice.

Elias’s conscience started screaming at him to take it easy on his

mate. That hurting Abel would not endear him to the man. Elias
lightly pushed the bags toward Abel, giving him plenty of time to
react.

“Stop taking it easy on me,” Abel snapped as he caught one bag

that slowly neared him. He flung it away from him toward Elias but
he was too weak to do much but nudge it.

“I’m not.” Elias held his hands up in the air.
“Stop lying. I don’t need you feeling sorry for me. I can take care

of myself.” Abel jutted his chin in the air.

“You heard the man.” Quinn grinned up at Elias.
Elias looked from Quinn back to his mate. He didn’t want to

accidently hurt Abel. As it was, Abel was barely keeping himself
upright. His shoulders hunched over and he couldn’t raise his feet
very high in the air as he took each step.

“Do it or I’ll just freeze you.” Abel warned.
That did it. The memory of coming to in the hallway and seeing

the pictures Trevor took of him standing there like a moron with his
lips puckered, leaning in for a kiss, had his anger spiking back up to
complete annoyance with his mate.

AJ Jarrett

Without any more prodding, Elias sent one bag after another

toward Abel. Abel dodged and froze each one. He was doing really
well, actually.

“That seemed to make you angry, huh?” Abel took a step back,

just missing one of the bags. “Maybe next time you should ask
permission before you try kissing someone.”

Elias’s nostrils flared and his hands clenched into fist. As one of

the bags swung back toward him Elias kicked it, hard. Abel didn’t
have time to react and went flying off the beam further than any other
time. He fell facefirst into the drying mud.

“Fuck, E!” Quinn hustled over to the side of the mud hole,

looking for Abel.

“Is he okay?” Elias walked along the catwalk waiting for Abel to

get up and say another hurtful comment.

A few seconds passed and Abel still hadn’t gotten up yet. Fear for

his mate had Elias bending his knees and leaping into the air over the
wooden beam. He landed hard in the mud beside Abel. Elias reached
for his mate and rolled him over and pulled his head into his lap.

“Abe, come on, wake up!” Elias shouted as he lightly smacked

Abel on the cheek. “Please, open your eyes.” Elias’s voice shook with
each word.

Suddenly, out of nowhere it seemed, a big ball of gooey mud

smacked into his face. Elias gasped for breath. As he wiped the
sloppy mess from his eyes he noticed a slight grin on Abel’s lips and
his hand raised in the air.

“Why you little shit!” Elias shoved Abel off his lap, splashing into

the mud.

“What?” Abel started to laugh so hard his whole body shook.

“You don’t like this?”

Another plop of mud hit him in the chest and Elias growled low in

his chest. He lunged for Abel as Abel sat up and started to scoot away
but he didn’t get far. Elias sat on Abel’s lap and lifted fists full of mud
in his hands to smash against Abel’s head. Abel raised his arms up to

Elias's Clueless Witch

whined around Elias’s waist and somehow managed to roll Elias to
his back. Abel used his hands and arms to send a wave of mud on top
of Elias.

“Okay, let’s call it a day,” Quinn said, but neither Elias or Abel

were listening.

They carried on for a few minutes more until finally Elias said,

“Okay, I give up.” He grabbed for Abel’s wrist. “You win. You’re the
mud king.”

“King?” Abel looked up at the sky as if in thought, then nodded

his head. “I think I like that.”

“Well then you are my mud king.” Elias grinned up at his mate.
The smile on Abel’s face did something crazy to Elias’s heart. It

beat a little harder and his skin tingled with warmth. Abel smiled with
his whole face, making his features softer and his eyes shiny like
glowing spotlights.

Abel looked down at Elias and his smile started to fade. Slowly

Abel leaned forward. His eyes looked between Elias’s eyes and his
lips and Elias held still. He didn’t want to spook Abel.

Elias let out a deep exhale as the softest lips he’d ever felt brushed

over his. It wasn’t forceful or sloppy but gentle and warm, just like
Abel. Elias lifted his hands and lightly rested them on Abel’s hips and
let his mate kiss him. And it was absolutely perfect.

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Seven

His bones ached and his mouth had grown dry. With all the mud

he’d ingested, no big shocker there, but he refused to give up,
especially with Elias there. For some odd reason he wanted to impress
the insufferable man.

Abel endured more punishment than he’d ever had to experience

before. It was worst then being pelted with paintballs for hours on
end.

The wooden beam was only four inches wide and was suspended

about five feet in the air. Abel didn’t find that part too hard and after
his first dip into the mud the fear of getting dirty no longer bothered
him. No, it was the heavy, solid punching bags that came rushing at
him every few seconds.

Abel noticed when the bags started coming harder and faster at

him. He could tell that Elias was enjoying this. Not that Abel could
really blame the guy. They only just met and Abel had frozen him
twice in less than two days. It wouldn’t have been such an issue if
Abel had been freezing everything in sight, but he hadn’t. He could
barely get his powers to work half the damn time but for some reason
whenever he got near Elias his powers sparked to life.

Between dodging bags, Abel would sneak peeks of Elias. He

couldn’t tell if Elias could see him doing that but just in case he kept a
scowl on his face, not wanting to let Elias know he was checking him
out. Elias stood at least four inches shorter than him and Abel had to
guess he weighed more than the man, but Elias was built way stronger
than him. Abel didn’t work out much. He hated exerting too much
energy on something he didn’t enjoy and sweating his ass off to have

Elias's Clueless Witch

a rock-solid body wasn’t his idea of a good time. Being a paranormal,
his body naturally stayed toned and fit, but nothing like the other
warriors.

Abel’s eyes dropped to stare at Elias’s legs. His jeans were faded

and had holes in the knees and clung snug to his trimmed body. At
one point Elias had turned around to tighten one of the ropes holding
a bag, and Abel’s mouth fell open at the rounded bubble butt
concealed in Elias’s denim jeans. And Abel didn’t even want to think
about Elias’s broad bulky shoulders. Just looking at Elias had Abel’s
internal sensory panel going haywire. In all his life he’d never been
more turned on and it was confusing him.

Just thinking of the two kisses he’d shared with Elias made him

feel foolish. He’d never had much practice at it and maybe he had
been freezing Elias not because he was afraid of him but because he
wasn’t sure he was doing it right.

He glanced up at Elias again and he knew deep down a man like

that wasn’t a virgin. The way Elias’s kissed told him that much.
Elias’s tongue moved with well-practiced precision as it lapped at his
lips then sunk into his mouth, licking and nibbling, making Abel’s
toes curl and his dick stand up to say hi. Where Elias moved with
confidence, Abel didn’t have the first clue as to what he was doing. It
made him feel inadequate compared to Elias.

The longer the morning went on, Abel’s mind jumped from one

thought to the next. From Elias’s kisses, to how his hands felt when
they touched him. It made Abel’s breath catch and want to have a
private practice session with Elias on other things than battle
techniques.

But then a thought occurred to him. If Elias wasn’t a virgin like

him, which Abel highly doubted, how many people, men and women,
had Elias been with? Now that thought had him seeing red and it
worked in his favor. Every heavy bag that came at him he froze or
knocked out of the way. Just the mere thought of someone else being
allowed to enjoy Elias’s company, let alone his body, pissed Abel off.

AJ Jarrett

It made him want to hurt someone and he wasn’t a violent sort of
person.

When Elias suggested Abel needed a break, Abel refused. If he

took a break it’d be like admitting all this was too hard for him. That
he was weak. Being weak to your Warrior of the Light mate was an
insult to both of them. How could someone as handsome and strong
as Elias ever want someone like Abel if he couldn’t even finish a
simple task like this one?

When Elias looked like he wasn’t going to push over the next bag,

Abel threatened him with the one thing he knew for a fact would piss
Elias off, freezing him. Like he thought, one bag after another came
rushing at him. Abel maneuvered and froze the bags and smiled to
himself at how well he was doing. When he noticed the bags were
coming in slower again, he couldn’t hold back a comment about Elias
asking for permission to kiss him, and that little vocalized suggestion
had a bag crashing into him so hard he went flying. He landed
facefirst in the thickening mud.

Well that’s one way to get a guy’s attention.
The longer he lay there, Abel didn’t want to get up. Every muscle

in his body throbbed and ached, and to be fair he did want a break. He
was thirsty and hungry and wanted to take a shower.

He could hear Quinn’s concerned voice break through his little

pity party, but he didn’t feel like moving. It was embarrassing to be
lying head down and ass up in the air in front of Elias. The man
probably was regretting ever laying eyes on him.

Then he heard Elias’s fear-laced voice. The ground beside him

shook with force and then he felt Elias’s hands on him. Abel kept his
eyes shut, enjoying how worried Elias sounded. Warm wet hands
touched his face and Abel had to fight back a smile.

The longer he lay there motionless the more Elias’s fear grew,

Abel could literally feel it pulsing in his body. To alleviate his mate’s
worry, Abel dug his hand in the mud then slapped it into his face. The
next thing Abel knew he and Elias were wrestling playfully around on

Elias's Clueless Witch

the ground. He heard Quinn call it a day and the warrior walked away,
leaving them alone.

Abel got the upper hand and flipped Elias over and sat on his hips.

Abel had Elias’s wrist pinned in the mud over his head and the playful
grin on Elias’s face undid Abel. It silenced all the fear and worry he
had about making a fool of himself for his lack of experience. His
body craved this man and Abel didn’t want to fight the attraction any
longer.

In a move that even shocked Abel, he leaned down and kissed

Elias. Just the slightest touch of lips against lips and moist heated
breath had Abel hungering for more.

He managed not to fumble the kiss and took it slow. Actually, he

though back to the dream he’d had of his father and Benny and tried
to reenact that kiss. Slow and steady. The passion started to build and
Abel whimpered and he nipped harder at Elias’s bottom lip. He never
knew how much fun kissing could actually be.

“I like this,” Abel mumbled as he pulled back to stare into Elias’s

blue eyes. “Kissing you.”

“I like it, too.” Elias raised a mud-slick hand up to push Abel’s

hair out of his face. “I really like that you didn’t use your power on
me.”

“Me, too.” Abel used his finger to trace around the outer edge of

Elias’s lips.

“I got the hose out for you guys. Miles would be so mad if you

tracked mud into the house. Oh shit!”

Abel and Elias both looked up to see Trevor standing at the far

end of the mud pit. His cheeks slightly flushed and he was looking
anywhere but at them.

“Thanks, Trev,” Elias grumbled. “Perfect timing as always.” Elias

sat up. When Abel tried to scramble off his lap, Elias’s strong arms
wound around him, holding him close.

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“I’m sorry.” Trevor laid the hose on the ground. “I’ll just leave

this here. Please continue whatever it was you were doing.” Trevor
winked, then spun on his heel and skipped back toward the house.

“Sorry about that.” Elias pinched Abel’s chin gently, forcing him

to look up. “Hey, now don’t shut down on me.” Elias leaned in close
to rest his forehead against Abel’s. “Tell me what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Abel tried to pull away but Elias’s iron-tight grip

wouldn’t allow it and to be fair Abel didn’t want to get away.

“Come on, Abe, talk to me.” Elias rubbed their noses together.
Abel looked up and grinned. “Why do you call me that?” All the

shyness he felt at being caught kissing vanished at the little nickname
Elias had given him. No one had even done that before. Well, his
mother before she passed away, called him her wittle witch, but this
was different.

“I don’t know.” Elias shrugged. “I like calling you something that

no one else does. Hopefully that makes me standout just a little to
you.”

“What do you mean?” Abel tilted his head to meet Elias’s eyes.
Elias took a deep breath. “I should be more important to you than

the rest of them. You’re mine, Abe. We’re mates. Do you know what
that means?”

“Yeah.” Abel nodded his head. “Basically.”
“I want you. I know it’s crazy. We just met and I can’t stop

thinking about you. The more time I spend with you I can’t ever
imagine how I survived all my life without you.” Elias wrapped a
hand around Abel’s neck and squeezed. “This thing between us will
never go away or lessen and I don’t want it to.”

Abel’s lips parted in a gasp at the force of Elias’s words. No one

had ever wanted him like this before and he knew right then and there
that he didn’t want to fight this attraction to Elias. “Me either,” Abel
whispered.

“Oh thank god!” Elias pulled Abel closer and smashed their lips

together in a needy kiss.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Abel dug his nails into Elias’s shoulders and held on. His dick

began to stiffen and he could feel Elias’s poking at his ass. As much
as Abel wanted this, he couldn’t deny how nervous he felt. His body
began to shake and he started second guessing every move he made
and then suddenly everything stopped. Abel leaned away from Elias
to see he’d frozen him again.

“Dang it. Why does this keep happening to me?” Abel crawled off

of Elias’s lap and sat next to his still body. Elias’s eyes were shut and
his hands held up, still caught where he’d been holding Abel, and his
tongue was sticking out a little. A totally embarrassing pose to be left
in.

Abel brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms

around them and waited. He wasn’t going to leave Elias like this
again. And this time he could honestly admit he hadn’t done this on
purpose. His nerves must of gotten the best of him. Abel rested his
head on his knees and closed his eyes as he waited.

“It happened again, didn’t it?” Elias asked after a few minutes of

quiet.

“Yeah, sorry about that.” Abel couldn’t meet his mate’s eyes,

afraid to see anger in the blue depths. “I didn’t mean to this time, I
swear.”

“I believe you.” Elias scooted closer and wrapped an arm around

Abel’s back, lightly rubbing it. “Is there a reason I make you so
nervous? Is it just me or would this happen with any guy that tried to
kiss you?”

Abel turned his face into his knees, shielding his face. “Probably a

little of both.” He took a deep breath. He had to tell Elias the truth,
because it would for certain make more sense to him then. “Elias, I’m
a virgin. I have no experience whatsoever, so this would probably
happen to any man who got close to me.”

“Whoa.” Elias hand stilled on Abel’s back.
“Yeah.” Abel could feel the flush on his face.
“Really? A virgin.”

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“Yes, really.” Abel nudged Elias in the side with an elbow. “Who

would make something like that up?”

“No one, I guess.” Elias’s fingers went back to rubbing circles on

his shoulder blades. “How old are you?”

“Sixty-three.”
“Damn!” Elias said in a high-pitched voice. “That's a long time to

go without ever having sex.”

“Well excuse me.” Abel stood up so fast he wobbled a little under

the pull of the mud. “Maybe I was waiting for someone special,
unlike some people.” Abel started to wade through the mud to the side
of the pit. He didn’t want to be around Elias and have him looking at
him as if something were wrong with him. Yeah, he hadn’t had sex
before but he never really felt the need until he met Elias.

“Abe, wait!” Elias called out to him. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
A hand grabbed at the back of Abel’s jeans, pulling him back

down. He rested his head against the side of the dirt wall, not wanting
to meet Elias’s face.

“I think it’s awesome that you waited.” Elias turned Abel around

to face him. “I’m actually glad that you did.” Elias took a step closer
until his chest touched Abel’s. “I’m a selfish bastard and I don’t like
to share. Knowing that you’ll only know what it’s like to be loved by
me is the biggest gift you could have ever given me. Thank you.”
Elias rose up to kiss Abel’s lips.

“Knowing that I’m a sixty-three-year-old virgin isn’t a turn off to

you?”

“Nope.” Elias shook his head and kissed him again.
“Really?” Abel cocked his head to the side, confused as hell.

Wouldn’t Elias want a lover who knew what he was doing?

“Abe, it turns me on like you wouldn’t believe knowing you will

only know my touch. Every kiss, every caress, every moment of pure
bliss you experience will be from me.” Elias dropped his head and
started kissing along Abel’s neck.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Well that’s just a little selfish, don’t you think?” Abel giggled,

flinching at the ticklish sensation. “I mean, I’m just assuming this,
you’re not a virgin are you? Maybe I wanted you to be a virgin, too.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you, but I never really believed I’d

find a mate.” Elias cupped his hands on either side of Abel’s face.
“And let’s face it. At least one of us needs to know what they are
doing.”

“Good point.” Abel rested his forehead to Elias’s. A twinge of

jealousy still weighed heavy in his stomach, but it did alleviate some
of his stress on being so inexperienced.

Abel sucked in a breath as Elias’s hands trailed down his chest,

going lower until a warm hand covered the bulge in Abel’s pants.
Elias stroked his hand back and forth and Abel could feel his balls
draw up tight to his body.

“Elias,” Abel whimpered and let his head fall forward onto Elias’s

shoulder.

“You okay?” Elias kissed the side of Abel’s head, never releasing

his hold on Abel’s cock.

“Can w…Can we take this slow?” Abel took in deep breaths,

trying to calm his racing heart. He wanted Elias, no doubt about it, but
didn’t want to rush anything either.

“Shit, I’m sorry.” Elias quickly released his dick and wrapped his

arms around Abel. “We can go as slow as you need to. I don’t want
you to feel like I’m pressuring you.” Elias pulled back enough to look
into Abel’s eyes. “But I won’t deny that I can’t wait to be inside you.”

“Good to know.” Abel’s voice cracked as he spoke.
Elias grinned and chuckled. He then turned Abel around and gave

him a boost up and out of the mud pit. Once he stood on the grass, he
reached down a hand to help Elias up. They took turns using the hose
to get the majority of the mud off.

“So do you want to eat dinner together?” Elias asked as he opened

the back door for Abel.

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“Like a date?” Abel smiled, butterflies swarming around in his

stomach.

“Yeah, but we have to do it here. Can’t chance taking you out of

the compound.”

“No, that’s fine.” Abel tucked his hair behind his ears. “I’d love

to.”

“Sweet.” Elias pecked Abel on the cheek.
“We’ll have a picnic in your room.” Elias pursed his lips. “Let’s

say around sevenish.”

“Okay.” Abel stood there grinning like a fool as he watched Elias

walk away.

“Your first date!” Abel jumped at Trevor’s shrill sounding voice.

He stood at the other entrance into the kitchen, hands clasped
together, as he bounced up and down. “How exciting. What are you
going to wear?”

“Wear?” Abel’s eyes went wide. He hadn’t thought about all that.
“Here, I’ll help you.” Trevor put his arm around Abel’s shoulders

and walked him up to his room. “We’ll get you all spiffed up for your
date with Elias.” Trevor hugged him close.

I have a date with Elias! Abel couldn’t believe it. He just had to

work really hard not to freeze Elias. They were mates, after all, and
that meant an eternity of hearing about how he froze his lover. He
smiled at thinking of spending the rest of his life with Elias. The idea
didn’t scare him anymore.

Elias's Clueless Witch

Chapter Eight

Elias showered and changed and did a quick check in with Ben.

He might not be out on a mission at the present, but he still liked to
know what was going on. And he also wanted to see if anything had
been discovered about Asher or Benedict, still nothing, though.

Just before seven, Elias stood at Abel’s bedroom door with a

basket of food. Trevor and Miles had volunteered to make their dinner
while Elias watched Colby. Not a hardship there. The little kid was
growing on him and plus, cooking wasn’t Elias’s thing. He’d burned
anything he tried to prepare and end up feeding Abel peanut butter
and jelly sandwiches and that just didn’t scream romantic.

“Were you going to knock?” Abel opened his door and smiled

down at Elias.

Abel had his long auburn hair pulled back at the base of his neck,

showing off his sharp jaw line and straight nose. His cheeks were a
little flushed and a slight smile played across his lips. Elias let his
eyes roam south and took in the white button-down shirt, loose-fitting
tan cargo shorts, and his bare feet. For some reason Elias found it
rather hot to see Abel’s bare feet. The long slender pale toes were just
begging to be sucked. Elias so desperately wanted to kiss each toe and
then lick along the instep.

“You okay?” Abel asked.
“Great!” Elias shook his head and tried to get his breathing under

control. He lifted the basket. “You hungry?”

“Always.” Abel moved out of the way and waved his hand

forward. “Please come in.”

AJ Jarrett

Elias stepped into Abel’s room and looked around. The bed was

made and the drapes were all pulled up. He noticed a blanket lay out
on the floor in front of the open glass doors leading out onto a small
wooden deck. Elias set the basket down on the blanket and stared out
onto the property. The sun had started its descent in the blue sky, and
a warm breeze wafted through the room.

“Everything all right?” Abel moved to stand beside him.
“Yes.” He turned to face Abel and wrapped his arms low on

Abel’s hips. “Everything is perfect. Let’s eat.”

They sat down on the blanket and Elias opened the basket and

pulled out the containers. Miles and Trevor had packed fried chicken,
garlic mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, and a few rolls. Elias found it
funny how much the two vampires liked to cook, and they were good
at it, too.

“Oh, I almost forgot.” Abel hopped up and headed toward his

dresser. Sitting on top was a bottle of wine and two wine glasses.
“Trevor brought this up for us earlier.” Abel popped the cork and
poured them both a glass.

They didn’t talk much as they ate. They chatted about simple

things like the weather and about life around the warrior’s compound.
Noting too serious.

By the time they’d finished the sun had started to set. They packed

back up the containers and took turns washing their hands in Abel’s
bathroom. When Elias came out he saw that Abel had took the pillows
off his bed and laid them on the blanket.

“I thought we could look up at the stars.” Abel patted the spot

next to him on the blanket. “I liked doing that when I was a kid.” He
shrugged innocently as he turned his attention back to the darkening
sky. “My mom use to say we could read our future in the stars if we
looked hard enough.”

Elias slowly walked over to Abel and eased down beside him.

“Oh, yeah? Did it work?”

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Nah.” Abel nudged Elias with his shoulder. “I think she was full

of shit.” Abel chuckled. “But the stars were always so bright and
pretty it made up for not seeing the future.”

Elias laughed. “Maybe but it sounded like a nice concept. I bet it

made you look even harder.”

“It did.” Abel nodded as he looked up at the glowing stars. “So…”

Abel drew out the word. “What do you want to talk about?”

“Oh, I don’t know.” Elias leaned back, propping up on his elbows.

“Tell me a little bit about yourself?”

“I’m sure you know plenty about me already.” Abel lay down on

his back and put his arms behind his head. “Ben and the others
probably filled you in by now.”

Elias looked over at Abel. The man didn’t meet his stare and Elias

didn’t need to see his face to know that this bothered him. Abel was
the son of Asher Guillory, the most hated man in the paranormal
world. That had to be hard for him, and hard for anyone to believe
that Asher wasn’t the selfish bastard everyone believed him to be.

“I heard some. Your mother was a witch who died because of

messing with magic to get pregnant with you and defied the laws of
the natural order and had a child with a vampire.” Elias rolled to his
side. He could see Abel’s body stiffening. “And your father is the
most despised man in our world, but that’s not what you believe.
That’s not your story.” He caressed the back of his fingers down
Abel’s cheek. “So why don’t you tell me about you and what your life
was really like.”

“If I tell you, will you even believe me?”
“Yeah, I would.” Elias leaned down to brush his lips lightly over

Abel’s.

“Well…” Abel smiled as he spoke, telling stories of his childhood

with his mother and his adopted father Phillip. Elias couldn’t help but
think that Abel’s life was abnormally normal for a paranormal being.
He attended human schools. His mother made his lunch every
morning, took him to school, and picked him up afterwards. They

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vacationed and celebrated the holidays. They were a loving family,
something Elias knew nothing about. “Even after she died, Phillip did
his best to keep my life as normal as possible. He stepped into the role
of full-time dad without one ounce of hesitation. Not a lot of men
would have done that, but he did. He might not have been my
biological father, but he was my dad and I loved him.”

“He and your mother sounded like good people. You were lucky

to have them.” And Elias meant every word of what he said.

“I was.” A grin tugged at Abel’s lips. “So what about you, mister

tough warrior? What was your life like growing up?”

Elias sucked in a breath. He knew this was coming but he really

had hoped Abel wouldn’t want to know about his childhood. It was
one of loneliness. Quite depressing, actually, and not much to tell.

“I was orphaned when I was just a toddler. I don’t remember my

parents.” Elias sat up. He hated telling people about his life. He didn’t
want the pitying glances they were sure to give him.

“That’s awful. How did you survive?” Abel sat up beside him and

lightly touched his arm. When Elias cut his stare to Abel he didn’t see
pity or sadness, just curiosity.

“My earliest memory is of roaming around the woods, cold and

hungry.” Elias rubbed his hand over his chin. “I guess I was around
three maybe. I’m not sure how long I’d been out there before a large
tawny-colored cougar walked up beside me. It sniffed me then started
to lick my face. The next thing that happened I shifted into my cougar
form and I stayed that way until I was about sixteen and the Warriors
of the Light found me.”

“You don’t remember your parents at all?” Abel asked.
Elias looked out into the darkness, his brow creasing in thought.

“Bits and pieces come to me every now and again. I don’t think I was
abandoned on purpose. I have these flashbacks of a woman holding
me and kissing my cheeks. It fills me with love every time I think
about it.” Elias closed his eyes, smiling at the vision behind his
eyelids, then quickly opened them. “Carter is a witch that can see into

Elias's Clueless Witch

a person’s past and he’s offered to look for me but I don’t want him
to.”

“Why not?” Abel grabbed his hand.
“Because what if what he sees isn’t like what I remember?” Elias

turned his head to face Abel. “I don’t want to be disappointed by my
memoires if they are false. My life might not have been what others
had but it was my life. I was raised by cougars and the one that found
me was very affectionate and raised me as her cub.”

“What happened to her?”
“She died of old age I think. One morning she just didn’t wake up.

After that I shifted back into my human form and roamed around until
Quinn found me.” He smiled at the memory. “They were hunting
down a pack of rabid coyote shifters in Michigan. They had made
camp and it was dark out when I walked right up to them without one
thought of being afraid. I could smell the humanity on them and knew
they wouldn’t hurt me.”

“Then what happened?” Abel crossed his legs, propped his elbow

up onto his thigh, and let his head rest in his palm.

“They took me in and trained me to be a warrior and the rest is

history.” Elias clapped his hands. “They’ve taught me a lot in the ten
years since I met them. They’re my family now.”

“I’m glad you found them. It’s awful how all that came about

but—” Abel sat up straight, his spine stiff, eyes opened wide, and his
bottom lip quivered. “Did you just say ten years?”

“Um, yeah.” Elias cocked a brow at him.
“And you were sixteen when they found you?”
“Where are you going with all this?” Elias could hear Abel’s heart

rate accelerate and he feared the man might pass out.

“You’re only twenty-six?” Abel raised his hands to wave a breeze

over his face. “Not only am I a virgin, but the guy I’m mated to is
thirty-seven years younger than me? Shit,” Abel whispered as he tried
to stand up.

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“Abel, calm down.” Elias grabbed Abel by the wrist and pulled

him into his lap. It was a little awkward with Abel being taller than
him, but Elias managed to situate his mate over his thighs, legs
straddling his hips. “Look at me.” Elias gently placed his hands on
Abel’s soft pale cheeks. “Age is just a number for us immortals. So
what if I’m younger than you and have more experience? It doesn’t
matter.” Elias pulled Abel forward until he could rest his forehead
against his. “With the life I’ve lived I feel like I’m a hundred years
old.”

“B…but you’re not.” Abel tried to pull away.
“And like I said, it doesn’t matter, Abel.” Abel continued to

fidget, trying to get away, so Elias used his strength to push Abel onto
his back and rolled on top of him. “Ben is over a thousand years older
than Miles, same for Quinn and Trevor. Do they look like it bothers
them?” Abel shook his head. “Then you shouldn’t let our age gap and
your lack of experience bother you. You’re mine, Abel, like it or not,
and I have no intention of ever letting you go.” Elias leaned down and
nipped at Abel’s lip, causing the man to yelp, then quickly soothed
the sting with his wet tongue. “You have no idea how much it turns
me on that you’re untouched. God, it makes me so hard.” To prove
his point Elias used his knees to push his way between Abel’s thighs
and thrust his hips forward, letting his stiff cock grind into Abel’s
groin. Elias grinned when he felt the distinct bulge of Abel’s long
dick poking him back.

“Elias,” Abel gasped, as his hands came up to twist in Elias’s

short hair.

“I’m right here.” Elias lowered his head and took Abel’s lips in a

passionate kiss. His tongue breached between Abel’s slack lips.
Abel’s tongue lay heavy in his mouth and Elias prodded it until he
coaxed Abel into kissing him back and god, it was pure heaven.

Abel brought his legs up to wrap around Elias’s waist and Elias

jerked his hips forward, rubbing their hard cocks against each other.

Elias's Clueless Witch

The rough material of their pants hindered Elias from feeling his
mate’s naked flesh and that just wouldn’t do.

Elias sat up and reached down and started on the buttons of Abel’s

shirt, but there was just too many, so he fisted a hand in each side and
yanked it open. Buttons flew in all directions.

“Fuck! You’re so hot.” Elias’s hand trembled as he reached down

to run his fingers over Abel’s smooth chest. His muscles weren’t as
defined as his own but damn, Abel’s soft skin covering the lean
muscle made Elias’s cock hard. He pinched one of the tanned nipples
and it pebbled under his touch. He moved his hands lower and Abel’s
stomach jumped from every light caress. Once Elias reached the
fastening on Abel’s shorts he flicked open the button and said, “Take
these off.”

Abel stared up at him with wide eyes and Elias ran his warm palm

over Abel’s stomach and grinned up at him. He didn’t want to
freighted Abel, but he wanted his mate with a hunger he wasn’t sure
he could keep contained for much longer. If he could just get one taste
he’d be able to calm the cougar roaring inside him, demanding he
claim their mate.

Abel nodded and lifted his hips and Elias pulled the shorts down

Abel’s legs and tossed them to the side. Even in the dark he could see
perfectly fine. Abel’s pale skin sparkled in the dim light from the stars
outside. Elias took in the sight of Abel’s untouched body from his
head all the way down until he reached Abel’s long, hard cock. It
pulsed with blood, glowing a bright pinkish red. Elias reached out and
ran a finger down Abel’s length and his mate whimpered.

“Feels so good.” Abel fell back on the pillow, sucking in deep

breaths.

Elias smiled to himself. If Abel thought Elias just touching him

was good he’d lose his fucking mind once he put his mouth on his
beautiful cock.

Elias sat back and pulled his shirt over his head and yanked his

pants down to his thighs and fondled his hard length as he watched

AJ Jarrett

Abel look upon him. Elias knew he wasn’t the biggest warrior in the
house but what he lacked in physical height he more than made up
with his dick size. It was just a little over eight inches and thick as a
beer can. Elias liked the size and shape of his cock and he hadn’t had
any complaints before and from the dazed look in Abel’s eyes he
wouldn’t have any now.

“Elias, I’m…I’m nervous,” Abel whispered as he stared down at

the monster hanging heavy between Elias’s thighs. “I’m not sure I can
go through with this.”

“Shh, it’s okay.” Elias lowered his chest to Abel’s and slowly

kissed along his jaw line, dipping his tongue in the hollow where his
neck and shoulder met. “I promised you already we’d go slow.” Elias
darted his tongue into Abel’s mouth, then pulled away. “Can I taste
you, Abel? Will you let me touch you here?” Elias wrapped his
fingers around Abel’s straining cock and gently stroked his veiny
length.

“You’re touching me there now.” Abel gasped as Elias picked up

his rhythm, using his thumb to smear the clear juices beading at the
tip.

Elias brought his thumb up to his mouth and sucked away Elias’s

pre-cum. The flavor was sweet and salty, perfect. Abel’s breath
hitched as he watched Elias. “But can I touch you there with my
mouth?” Elias brought his wet thumb down on Abel’s shaft and ran
from base to tip.

“Umm.” Abel’s chest rushed up and down and his eyes were wide

but finally he said, “Okay.”

“Just relax, Abel.” Elias reached up to kiss him one more time and

stared into his eyes. “You’re in control of this. We’ll only go as far as
you want but I think you’ll really like this.” Elias winked at Abel and
made his way down Abel’s chest with wet flicks of his tongue.

When Elias finally reached the blunt rounded head of Abel’s cock

he teased his tongue around the flared head, sipping at the pre-cum
oozing out the tip. “You taste so good,” Elias said before dipping his

Elias's Clueless Witch

head down a little further, letting more of Abel’s length ease into his
mouth.

He glanced up to see Abel’s eyes flutter shut and his mouth fall

open as Elias swallowed down more of his leaking cock. Elias played
with the tip then slowly eased down the silky length until he had the
fat head lodged in his throat. He then pulled up in a slow, torturing
suck, slurping on the heated flesh. Elias went down again this time,
burying his nose in the trimmed patch of hair surrounding Abel’s
cock, breathing in his masculine scent and it was like setting a match
to a gas can.

Elias moved his hands down and around to Abel’s ass and

squeezed the firm globes with his fingers as he bounced his head up
and down on Abel’s pole. Abel moaned and gasped and his hips
bucked up, fucking his cock into Elias’s throat, and Elias loved it.
Abel’s cock started to swell and Abel fisted his hands into Elias’s
hair, pulling at the short strands, and then his body went taut. Elias
moved his head back enough for the head of Abel’s dick to sit on his
tongue, and Elias drank down every gushing pulse of thick cum as it
filled his mouth. Abel cried out and his body jerked and twitched with
every swipe of Elias’s tongue over his sensitive skin.

Abel’s breath began to even out and Elias’s let the softening cock

slide from his mouth. Sweat glinted over Abel’s body and his eyes
glowed with pleasure and complete euphoria. It made Elias burn even
hotter on the inside knowing he done that to his mate. He’d given
Abel his first blow job, and it looked like his mate really, really liked
it.

“How do you feel?” Elias asked, then kissed a trail up Abel’s

thigh then gently sunk his teeth into his hip.

Abel gasped then moaned as Elias sucked up a small bruise.

“Great.” His voice came out sounding unsteady but happy. “It was
better than I’d ever imagined.” Abel looked down at him. “Thank
you, Elias.”

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“You don’t have to thank me.” He kissed the soft swell of Abel’s

stomach. “It was my pleasure.” Elias sat up and his hard throbbing
cock slapped against this stomach and he winced. In his mission to
give as much pleasure as possible to his mate, he’d forgotten about his
own need.

“Can I…” Abel glanced down at Elias’s hard length and to tease

him, Elias started to stroke it. Abel’s eyelids fell to half-mast as he
watched Elias’s move his hand.

“Can you what?” Elias tilted his head to the side.
“Touch you?” Abel looked up and met Elias’s eyes. “I want to

touch you if that’s all right.”

“Ah, baby, it’s more than all right.” Elias moved up until he

straddled Abel’s waist and reached for Abel’s hand. He brought
Abel’s fingers to his shaft and waited for his mate to wrap his fingers
around the solid, thick length. His hissed as Abel moved his hand up
and down in a slow, teasing motion.

Elias sat as still as possible, letting Abel explore his cock. It didn’t

take long before Abel’s hand sped up and Elias could see that he was
getting more comfortable. “I love the way you feel.” Abel squeezed
his hand around Elias.

“I love the way you feel.” Elias repeated Abel’s words. He wanted

his mate to understand that he got just as much pleasure from Abel’s
body as Abel was getting from his. Elias put his hand over Abel’s and
encouraged him to move faster.

A tingling sensation started in Elias’s balls and worked its way up

his length. He let his head fall back and continued to help Abel jack
his cock. “I’m going to come. Oh fuck!” Elias groaned and brought
his head up to watch as the first splash of white cum shot out to land
over Abel’s chest, then another. His eyes fell shut and fireworks burst
to life behind his eyelids and his body felt numb from the force. Elias
had never in his life come that hard before.

Abel thrust his hips up, his cock hard again as well. Elias reached

down and jerked him off while he finished shooting his load all over

Elias's Clueless Witch

Abel’s chest. It only took about five pulls before Abel came again, his
cum mixing with Elias’s.

“You’re amazing, Abel.” Elias kissed Abel’s lips, then rolled to

lay on his side next to Abel. He wound his arm around Abel’s sweat-
and cum-covered chest, pulling him close.

Abel turned in Elias’s embrace, facing him. “No, Elias, you’re

amazing.” Abel brushed his lips over Elias’s.

“Then it’s settled, we’re both amazing.” Elias’s nuzzled his nose

into Abel’s cheek. “If you enjoyed that, think how great it will feel
when you let me in here.” Elias reached down and massaged Abel’s
left butt cheek. Abel’s body went stiff and he could feel his mate
pulling away. Elias tightened his grip. “Abel, I’m not saying we
should do that tonight. We can wait as long as it takes. I promised I
wouldn’t rush you and I meant it.” He pulled back to meet Abel’s
glazed-over eyes. “But what I meant by that is that I think anything
we do together will be great. Earth shattering, and I can’t wait to
experience all that with you.”

“Yeah?” Abel’s thin arms tightened around Elias’s chest. “You

don’t mind waiting?”

“Abe, baby, I’d wait a thousand years if that’s what it took.” He

secretly crossed his fingers, praying that wouldn’t be the case, but if it
were he’d survive because he had Abel in his life now. With each
passing minute his love for the witch grew stronger and stronger. Sex
was great but the love he was feeling toward Abel meant so much
more.

Abel smiled at him and snuggled closer. Elias held onto his mate

and let Abel’s soft breaths and body heat carry him off to dream land.

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Nine

“Stop teasing me.” Benny’s voice had a rough edge to it and Ash

smiled.

“Say it.” Ash chuckled as he darted around Benny, dodging his

long arms.

“I refused to be toyed with in this manner.” Benny stopped

chasing Ash and crossed his brawny arms over his chest. “I’m not a
child.”

“No, but you are pouting like one.” Ash tiptoed up as quiet as he

could and tapped Benny on the shoulder, but Benny must have heard
him because he spun around, wrapped his arms around Ash, and took
him to the ground.

“Oh, now who’s the one pouting?” Benny grabbed Ash by the

wrist and pulled his hands up and over his head, pinning him down
with his heavier body.

“I’m not pouting.” Ash with very little effort pulled at Benny’s

hold. “I’m annoyed.” He huffed out a breath.

“Oh my sweet, why so bothered?” Benny asked as he lowered his

head and kissed along Ash’s jaw, moving to suck on his plump
earlobe. “You know how I feel about you.”

“Yes, but it’s always nice to hear you say the words.” Ash

moaned and his body began to wither around beneath Benny’s
weight, his cock growing stiff.

“Fine, if I must.” Benny propped up on his elbows to stare down

at Ash. “Asher Guillory, I love you more than anything in this world.
You are the sun that warms my face, the sweet breeze that cools my
body, and the constant distraction that rules my day.”

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A smiled pulled up at the corners of Ash’s mouth and he arched

up to brush his lips over Benny’s. “Those have to be the most
beautiful words I have ever heard.” He kissed Benny’s grinning lips
once again. “I love you, too, forever.”

Ash used his tongue to poke and tease at Benny’s lips. Benny

growled deep and low and fell down to cover Ash’s body, kissing the
very breath from his lungs. With confident, strong fingers, Benny
removed Ash’s clothes until they both lay gloriously naked on the soft
grass-covered ground with the sun high above the only witness to
their lovemaking.

Benny shoved two fingers into Ash’s mouth and Ash knew what to

do. He licked and sucked on the solid warm digits until they were nice
and wet. Benny pulled them free, then eased his hand down to let his
determined fingers play at Ash’s tight entrance. Slowly then with
more force Benny worked those fingers into Ash’s body, stretching
him.

The sharp bite of searing pain was replaced with pleasure as

Benny caressed his fingers over the small mass of nerves that pushed
Ash closer to completion every time.

“Please, Benny,” Ash begged. He pulled his legs up toward his

chest, bracketing around Benny’s back and giving him more room to
play.

Benny slipped his fingers free. He brought his hand up to spit into

his palm then covered his pulsing shaft in the wetness. Benny guided
his stiff pole to Ash’s opening and pressed inside. Ash clenched his
eyes shut at the first shock of pain, but as Benny took him slowly,
feeding one slow inch at a time, Ash became ravenousness for more.

Once fully seated, Benny moved his body so that he lay chest to

chest with Ash, his cock buried deep inside his tight hole. “I cannot
think of a day I will not want you.” Benny thrust his hips lightly,
pulling a deep moan from Ash. “You are my world.”

“As you are mine.” Ash rubbed his hands down Benny’s back

until he grabbed fists full of his lover’s ass and urged him forward.

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Benny sped up his hips and they both panted and grunted as they

raced each other to the finish line. Ash could feel his balls draw up
tight and his muscles clenched around Benny’s cock. Benny reached
between their sweat-covered bodies and pulled on Ash’s shaft with the
same rhythm he fucked him. So good, so hot that it didn’t take long
for Ash to lose control. He came in a fury of hot seed, drenching
Benny’s hand and his own chest.

Benny threw his head back and shouted to the blue sky as he

emptied all he had deep inside Ash’s pulsing channel, the hot goo
marking Ash as Benny’s. With the last release of cum, Benny fell
forward to cover Ash’s smaller body. Ash took deep drugging breaths
of his lover’s scent, wanting to always remember this movement,
every moment they spent together.

After a moment Benny arched up, meeting Ash’s gaze. “You are

my love now and forever.”

“Forever,” Ash said softly as he reached forward for another

kiss.

Abel’s eyes opened wide and he quickly sat up, taking in his

surroundings. His heart beat rapidly in his chest and sweat soaked his
body. As his eyes focused he saw that he was still in his room at the
warrior’s compound, not some far-off meadow with beautiful high
trees and wild flowers growing all around him.

“It was a dream,” Abel whispered. “But it felt so real.” In his

dream he saw his father and Benny, laying on the ground making
love. Abel couldn’t really explain it. He didn’t see himself in the
dream as before but more like watching a movie of two people deeply
in love. He could see it in their eyes. “What’s going on?” Abel rubbed
a hand over his bare chest, trying to relieve the ache he felt for the
two men in his dream. They seemed so in love. What happened?

“Good morning!” The sound of Elias’s cheerful voice pulled Abel

from his musings.

Elias stood in the archway of his room, hair damp and in a fresh

pair of clothes. The smile on his face seemed suggestive and his

Elias's Clueless Witch

bright blue eyes roamed over his naked chest. Abel could feel the pull
even now toward Elias and the memoires of what they had done the
previous night came rushing back to him in a flood of hot emotions
and need.

“Morning,” Abel mumbled as he tugged his blankets higher. “Did

you sleep well?” Abel asked, trying to make small talk and get his
mind off of Elias’s red, swollen lips wrapped around his dick.

“I did, which is something I haven’t done in weeks.” Elias walked

over to the bed and sat down. He reached up and cupped his warm
palm against Abel’s cheek. “I have you to thank for that. Having you
cuddled up next to me made falling asleep quite easy.”

“Glad I could help.” Abel leaned into Elias’s touch. He turned his

head and kissed the warm, smooth palm. Abel stuck his tongue out to
trace the lines creasing his lover’s hand. Elias groaned and slowly
pulled his hand away.

“As nice as this is, we need to get up.” Elias stood up and

rearranged his stiffening cock.

“Why?” Abel reached for Elias and he took a step back. Thoughts

of last night and of having Elias’s mouth and hands on him made
Abel want to experiment some more.

“Quinn’s waiting for us.”
“Oh.” Abel let his hand fall back to his side. The mention of

Quinn’s name was like a bucket of ice water being dumped on his
head.

“Come on, Abe, it’s for your own good.” Elias leaned down,

kissed Abel on the lips, and then headed back for the door. “Get
showered and dressed.” Elias smacked his hand on the wall as he
walked out. “Hurry up.”

Abel threw his blankets back, grumbling under his breath. After

one night with Elias and getting comfortable with what his body
desired made him eager to learn more, but duty called.

Abel quickly showered and change in hopes the sooner he got this

over with the sooner he could spend more time with Elias.

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As he made his way down the stairs, bits and piece from his

dream kept distracting him. He knew Ash to be his father, a younger
version of his father, but still the man he called dad. The thing he
couldn’t understand was, what tore Ash and Benny apart? They
seemed so in love. How could something so pure turn around like it
had? The council of paranormal beings blamed Asher for causing an
uprising of dark forces, but from the last couple of dreams Abel had
had it didn’t seem possible. Ash loved Benny and Benny him.
Something else had to have happened.

“You ready?” Quinn asked once Abel stood in the kitchen.
“No, but does that matter?” Abel grabbed a banana, peeled it, and

ate it.

“Nah.” Quinn swatted him in the upper arm. “Let’s go.”
Abel looked around the room for Elias. Elias stood at the counter,

drinking coffee and making funny faces at Colby. He must have felt
Abel’s eyes on him because he turned around, smiled, then set his
coffee down.

“Let’s do this.” Elias entwined his fingers with Abel’s and led him

outside.

It was a bright day and the temperature had risen enough to make

Abel sweat as he stepped out of shade of the house. Today he’d just
worn a pair of nit shorts and a T-shirt. He dressed for comfort and
also in things he wouldn’t care if they got ruined.

“Okay.” Quinn turned around to face him and Elias. “Today is

going to be an easy day.” Quinn cut a look to Elias then said, “It’s
been brought to my attention that I might be being too hard on you,
but it’s only because I know you can do this.” Quinn bent down and
opened a box Abel hadn’t noticed.

“What’s in there?” he asked out of the corner of his mouth to

Elias.

“Just watch.” Elias chuckled.
Quinn stood up and held out a carton of eggs to Elias. “Today’s

lesson won’t involve any pain but it could get messy.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

Abel looked from the eggs, to Quinn, then back to Elias. Elias

started to laugh and Abel narrowed his eyes at him.

“You have to be joking,” Abel said to Quinn.
“Nope.” Quinn opened the carton and began tossing an egg up in

the air and catching it. Abel was impressed the damn thing didn’t
break. “Elias thought this would be a good training technique. No
pain but still holds the advantage to keep you on your toes.” Quinn
squinted as he looked up at the bright sun. “After an hour of this you
could be pretty ripe.”

“You thought of this?” Abel asked Elias, whose face had gone red

from laughing.

“It sounded like a good idea at the time.” Elias bent at the waist

holding his sides.

“Damn it.” Abel shook his head and placed his hands on his hips.

“So how’s this going to work?”

“Easy.” Quinn grinned at him, showing way too much teeth. Then

with his vampire-fast reflexes he threw the egg at Abel’s head.

It happened so quick Abel didn’t have time to react and took the

egg right to the forehead. Slimy egg yolk and juice ran down his face.
Abel sputtered and spit as some of the sticky goop ran down over his
lips.

“Shit!” Elias laughed even harder. “Quinn, I thought you were

going to wait until he was ready?”

“If dark warriors were to attack right now, do you think they’d

give Abel the chance to prepare himself?” He threw another egg at
Abel.

This one hit him square in the chest and Abel gritted his teeth. He

looked up and flicked a hand at Quinn. Quinn froze in place with
another egg held high in his hand.

“There you go, Abe. Freeze his ass.” Elias patted him on the

shoulder.

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“Watch it, mister.” Abel shrugged off Elias hand and took a

stepped out of the way of the flying egg, unsure when Quinn would
unfreeze. “I have you to blame for today’s activities.”

“Ah, babe, come on.” Elias ducked under Quinn’s arm and ran up

to Abel, turning him around to face him. “I thought this might be
better than getting shot at with paintballs again or the mud pit.” Elias
picked some egg shell off of Abel’s shirt. “Don’t be mad at me. I just
didn’t want to see you get hurt.”

Abel shook his head and grinned at Elias. “No, but apparently you

want to see me get all smelly and dirty.”

“Well we could always shower together after this.” Elias placed

his hands on Abel’s hips and pulled their groins together. “What do
you say?” He waggled his eyebrows.

“So you did have a plan behind all this?” Abel chuckled.
“Yep.” Elias leaned up to kiss Abel’s lips.
“What the fuck?” Quinn’s eyes flicked from where they stood

now to where they had before he’d been frozen. “You froze me?”

“Yeah, wasn’t I supposed to?” Abel asked.
“No. You’re supposed to freeze the eggs.” Quinn rubbed at his

forehead. “We are trying to hone your powers. We know you can
freeze a complete area, but you need to learn to freeze certain things.
You did well yesterday with the bags, but now you need to try on a
smaller target. You feel me?”

Unfortunately he did. Abel rolled his eyes heavenward and took a

deep breath. “I got it. Let’s get this over with.”

For the next two hours Quinn and Elias tossed eggs at him. Some

fast, some slow but dead on. It took a little bit before Abel got the
hang of it. A couple of times he did end up freezing Quinn and Elias
but as time went on he got better at just focusing on the eggs.

By the time Quinn called it a day, Abel was sticky with egg and

had a ripe scent going. He needed a shower in the worst way.

“Can I come in?” Elias asked when they stopped at Abel’s door.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Of course.” Abel entered his room first and headed to the

bathroom. He turned the nozzles on the shower and waited for it to
warm up. “If you want you can wait out there.” Abel pointed to the
bed but Elias ignored him and stepped into the bathroom and shut the
door. He lowered his hands and lifted his shirt up and over his head.
“What are you doing?” Abel asked.

“Taking my clothes off.” Elias kicked off his shoes then

unfastened his pants.

“Why?”
“You do remembering me saying we’d shower together after toss

the egg at Abel time was over, right?” Elias pushed down his jeans,
his underwear coming down with the stiff material.

“I…I…you were serious?” It took all of the power Abel had to

pull his eyes away from Elias’s semi erect cock.

“I’d never lie about something like that.” Elias ran his fingers over

Abel’s arm as he passed by and stepped into the shower. “Now hurry
up before the water goes cold.”

Abel looked in the mirror and grinned at his blushing face. Nerves

still clung to his every movement and doubt sat heavy in his chest, but
he wanted to do this. He wanted to get naked and touch and be
touched by Elias.

Once he had his clothes off, Abel pulled open the glass door and

stepped in behind Elias. The hot water splashed off of Elias and hit
Abel on the chest. Steam began to fill the room.

With a shaking hand, Abel reached out his fingers to touch Elias’s

plump, firm butt. Elias hummed and leaned back into Abel’s touch.
Abel let his fingers explore the tight muscles and toyed with the
crease that shielded Elias’s opening from him.

“I love it when you touch me.” Elias spun around and wrapped his

arms low on Abel’s waist, letting his fingers massage over Abel’s ass.
“I also like that you don’t seem so nervous either. You know I can
sense it when you’re nervous, right?”

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“You can?” Abel lifted his arms to rest on Elias’s shoulders.

Suddenly a little self-cautious.

“Yeah.” Elias kissed Abel’s collar bone. “I can hear it in the spike

in your heart rate and smell it seeping out your pores.” He flicked his
tongue out to trace around the divot under his Adam’s apple. “It’s not
a bad smell, just a warning signal, bitter and strong. Lets me know
something is bothering you.”

“That’s a little disconcerting.” Abel titled his head to the side,

giving Elias full access to his exposed neck. “You know this from
smelling me and being able to hear things I cannot. Seems a little
unfair.”

“You’re a witch, babe. You can freeze shit. That’s a pretty

awesome power.” Elias nipped at the corded muscle running up and
down Abel’s neck.

“Thank you.” Abel moaned as Elias tongue lapped at the water

trailing down his neck. “I’m just glad I took after my mother and not
my father. Being a vampire and drinking blood is something I don’t
think I could do.”

Elias pulled back to look into Abel’s eyes. “I wonder why that is

exactly? I mean usually a person takes after both their parents, but not
you.”

“You know that witch, Klaus?” Elias nodded. “He thinks it’s from

the magic my mother used to conceive me. Said the laws of nature
probably only allowed one trait to take root inside me and lucky for
me it was my mother’s.”

“Sounds like a liable theory.” Elias went back to sucking a line of

bruises up Abel’s neck.

Elias started to bite harder into his tender flesh. Abel cried out. He

let his lover shove him up against the hard, tiled wall. Elias pushed
Abel’s legs apart and positioned himself between them. With Abel’s
legs spread, it allowed for Elias to line up their cocks and rub them
together.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“God, that feels good.” Abel ran his fingers through Elias’s wet

hair.

Elias didn’t say anything but pulled back to reach for Abel’s body

wash. He poured a good amount onto his fingers then grinned at Abel
when he brought his hand back to wrap around both their straining
lengths and squeezed. Abel’s head fell back to thump against the
shower wall, his mouth falling open.

“You like that?” Elias asked as he bent his head to tease Abel’s

right nipple.

“Um-hm.” Abel arched his back off the wall and thrust into

Elias’s hand. The feel of Elias’s silky, smooth cock made Abel’s balls
tingle and his orgasm rush to the surface.

Elias kissed and sucked over Abel’s chest and the up and down

pulling on their cocks increased. Abel’s legs began to quiver and he
feared he’d fall over, but Elias’s hard grasp on him held him in place.

“So fucking hard for me.” Elias used his free hand to wrap around

Abel’s neck and pulled his head down for a hard kiss. Elias let go of
Abel’s neck to move his hand down his body. The skillful hand
reached around Abel to run the length of his crack, slowly easing his
way in. Abel grunted and sucked harder on Elias’s tongue as one
finger caressed over his twitching hole. He’d never been touched
there before and it released a need in Abel to be filled, but only by
Elias.

“Touch me more.” Abel whimpered and spread his legs further

apart. “I need to feel you.”

“Fuck yeah.” Elias used one finger to breach Abel’s untried hole

and that was all it took to send Abel flying. It was tight, a burning
sensation flared up his channel, but as Elias moved in and out of him
the pain melted into something else, pure ecstasy.

Cum shot out of Abel’s cock and he could feel his ass clenching

tight around Elias’s finger. Through hooded eyelids, Abel watched as
Elias’s face contorted into something that wasn’t human. His eyes
glowed a neon blue and his teeth lengthened to sharp points. Elias’s

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lips were pulled back from his teeth and a vibrating roar rose from his
chest.

It amazed Abel that he wasn't afraid. If anything he was more

turned on by it. For reasons he didn’t understand he titled his head to
the side and exposed his neck to Elias and that’s when it happened.
He screamed at the shock of Elias sinking his teeth into Abel’s
shoulders. Warmth filled him and he jerked as the hot splash of his
lover’s cum smeared between them, causing a smaller orgasm to seep
out the tip of Abel’s cock.

Tired and out of breath, Abel slumped back, only to be caught by

Elias, holding him up. Elias kissed his lips and nuzzled his nose into
his cheek. The whole time he kept repeating, “Mine, mine, mine.”

“Yes, I’m yours,” Able said, not sure why he felt the need to

confirm what they both already knew to be true.

“Forever,” Elias said into Abel’s shoulder.
Abel opened his eyes and stared out in front of him. Forever. That

had been the word Ash had said to Benny. If this was what his father
felt for Benny, then he understood the sadness that always seemed to
hide in the shadows of his father’s eyes.

“Forever,” Abel repeated softly, running his fingers up and down

Elias’s quivering back. “Forever mine.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

Chapter Ten

The next week passed in a blink of an eye it seemed. Abel still

trained with Quinn and had to endure whatever task he’d decided for
the day, but it wasn’t so bad. With Elias there, Abel felt more
confident and could endure what Quinn required of him. It seemed
like his powers were coming easier to him now, too. He hardly ever
froze anyone by accident anymore, but that didn’t stop him from
doing it on occasion.

Along with his training, Quinn taught him some fighting skills.

Both Quinn and Elias were adamant that he learn some defensive
moves just in case he were to get attacked. Abel had never been an
aggressive or violent person but he also knew things had changed. He
needed to learn how to protect himself if he wanted to stay alive. To
have to count on others was the coward’s way out and he refused to
be seen as weak.

But when he wasn’t working on better controlling his powers,

Abel spent his time with Elias. They hung out with the others in the
house and it helped to have Elias there. It made it easier to get to
know the other warriors. And he had started to notice that the others
didn’t give him that look like they didn’t trust him. He wasn’t sure if
they had started to believe that his father Asher wasn’t a monster or
not. But he was positive they didn’t see him as a threat.

The dreams still came to him every night. They were like little

glimpses into Benedict and Asher’s teenage years. Some of the
dreams were erotic as hell, waking Abel from a sound sleep, seeking
comfort from his own lover. That bothered Abel at first, being as Ash

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was his father, but to be honest Abel didn’t feel a fatherly connection
with the man going by Ash. That was his father in his youth before
life had hardened him. Abel felt like at times when he looked at Ash
that he was looking into a mirror. They looked so much alike but were
so different.

Then there were dreams of great sadness. Of Ash alone crying

over his lover. Everything Abel saw was from Ash’s point of view,
his feelings and thoughts. One thing was clear, his father at one time
had been madly in love with Benedict. Abel felt like he should tell
Ben all this, after all Benedict was his father and Ben had a right to
know, right?

Abel wasn’t so sure, so he kept all that he’d seen in his dreams to

himself. They were just dreams, it didn’t mean he was actually seeing
parts of his father’s past.

Elias rolled over and tightened his arm around Abel’s stomach,

spooning close to his back. Abel relaxed into his lover's embrace and
snuggled under the blankets until only his eyes were visible.

A few days ago Elias had moved all his stuff into Abel’s room.

He’d said it didn’t make sense for them to take up two rooms when he
was already in Abel’s all the time anyways. Made sense and Abel
didn’t fight him on it. He was tired of being alone and was happy to
share his space with Elias.

Elias. Abel couldn’t help but smile every time he said Elias’s

name. In a matter of days he’d fallen completely and utterly in love
with the cougar shifter. But that was a lie. Abel knew from the first
moment he’d seen Elias that he loved him. It might just be the mating
bond that had caused that effect on him and made it easy for things to
move so fast but it didn’t matter. Abel wanted Elias in his life any
way he could have him and the love he felt for his mate came
naturally. It was pure and innocent and perfect.

The press of Elias’s lips on his skin helped relax Abel even more,

and before he knew it he’d fallen asleep.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“We should just run away!” Ash said around a sob. “If we leave

now they’ll never find us. Please, Benny.”

“I cannot do that to my family.” Benny yanked his arm out of

Ash’s clutches. “There’s no honor in running away from what is
expected of me.”

“Honor?” Ash’s voice hitched. “Where is the honor in living a

lie?” Ash walked around until he was facing Benny. Tears streaked
down his reddened face. “You do not love her yet you will marry her
to satisfy your family. What about the love you feel for me? What
about what you want for yourself, Benny?”

“What I want does not matter, Ash.” Benny lifted his hands and

used his thumbs to wipe away Ash’s tears. “My family expects me to
wed and produce heirs that will carry on our family legacy. It is how
it is done, Ash, you know this. Your family expects the same from
you.”

“But unlike you I cannot live a lie.” Ash curled his fingers around

Benny’s wrist. “My heart only beats for you, my body only stirs for
you.” Ash took one of Benny’s hands and brought it down to his cock
and pressed Benny’s hand firmly against him. “Can you not feel it?”

Benny’s nostrils flared and he lips pursed into a straight line but

his hand squeezed Ash’s hardness behind the rough fabric of his
trousers. “I feel it and you do the same to me as well, Ash, but—”

Ash didn’t let Benny finish his sentence. He reached up, grasping

Benny around the neck and forced his lips down to meet his own. Ash
thrust his tongue into Benny’s mouth, trying to show his lover just
how much he loved him and that he’d give up everything to be with
him.

Benny’s fingers dug into Ash’s hips hard enough to leave bruises,

crushing their bodies together. “I swear you have cast a spell over
me. I feel like I’d die without you.” Benny gasped.

“I feel the same way and my dear, it’s not magic, its love.” Ash

leant in for another kiss.

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As the kiss intensified, Benny lowered his hands to Ash’s bottom

and lifted him up. Ash wrapped his legs around Benny’s hips and
allowed himself to be carried further into the barn to be laid upon a
few hay bales that lined the wall. Benny tore at Ash’s clothes and he
did the same to Benny’s. Once they were naked Benny pushed Ash’s
bare legs up to his chest and guided his erect cock into his body.

Ash cried out and his head shook from side to side but he didn’t

pull away. He wanted this, all of this. There was nothing he’d deny
his lover, nothing.

Benny rutted Ash’s hole as if he’d never get to again and maybe

that was what this was, but Ash refuse to believe that. Pre-cum oozed
from Benny’s cock, slicking Ash’s tight channel. Ash’s body
responded to his lover’s demand and he thrust his hips back against
Benny’s.

All too soon Ash could fell the stirring in his lower regions and

knew he was about to cum. He tightened his legs around Benny’s and
encouraged him to ride him harder. Ash reached between them and
gripped his cock hard and pulled on his burning shaft until he shot his
milky white cream.

Benny’s head dropped forward and he bit into Ash’s shoulder as

he came deep inside him, filling him with warmth.

Spent and weak from their orgasms, they laid tangled around one

another, neither wanting to leave.

“I love you, Ash.” Benny combed his fingers through Ash’s sweat

damp hair. “God only knows why but I cannot live without you. I love
you too much.”

“Do you mean that?” Ash sat up, resting his weight on his

elbows.

“With—”
“What is this?”
Ash and Benny both jumped apart at the sound of Benny’s father’s

voice and Benny stood up to face him. Alistair stood a few inches

Elias's Clueless Witch

shorter than Benny but he was built wide and sturdy. Ash had never
liked Benny’s father. The man intimidated and frightened him.

“Father, I can explain,” Benny said as he snatched his pants from

the floor and yanked them on.

“Explain? You want to deny what it is I see before my own very

eyes?” Alistair stormed up to Benny and raised his hand, smacking
his son hard across the cheek with the back of his palm. “I should
beat you until you are black and blue, covered in blood. How dare
you soil yourself in this manner?”

“Fath…father, I’m sorry.” Benny covered his hand over his

cheek, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

“And you!” Alistair turned his venom on Ash. “How dare you

lead my son astray like this? You were always a troublemaker, Asher
Guillory. You are no better than you worthless whore of a mother and
drunk of a father. I’m banishing you from our village.”

“Father, no!”
Alistair swung his arm back, connecting with Benny’s other cheek,

sending him sprawling on the ground. “Shut your mouth, boy.”

“Benny.” Ash stood up and rushed to Benny’s side but before he

could reach him Alistair gripped him hard around the arm.

“Don’t you dare go near him.” Alistair pushed him to the ground.

“You have caused enough trouble for one life time. I want you out of
our village by sunset or I will kill you myself.” Ash darted his eyes
over to Benny, who now stood up with his head hanging down. He
never once looked up at Ash. “Do you hear me? “Alistair shouted.

“Yes, sir,” Ash whispered, all the fight having left his body. He

sat on the dirty hay-covered floor and watched his lover walk away
from him. Benny never once looked back and Ash felt his heart shatter
into a million pieces.

Abel woke up in a cold sweat, tears streaming down his face. He

gasped for breath, so tore up with the pain he felt for Ash and Benny
that he couldn’t breathe.

AJ Jarrett

“Abe, what’s wrong?” Elias sat up and reached for him but Abel

pulled away.

“They were in love but he left him,” he mumbled into his hands as

he turned his back to Elias. The pain felt like a burning knife slicing
through his chest. Abel could feel Ash’s pain as if it were his own and
all Abel could think about was what would he do if he lost Elias. He
couldn’t let that happen. He loved Elias too much for that.

* * * *

“Baby, what are you talking about? Do you want me to get

someone?” Elias threw the blankets off his legs but stopped when
Abel wrapped his clammy fingers around his wrist.

“Don’t leave me.” Tears flowed from Abel’s eyes and Elias didn’t

know what to do.

“I won’t.” He sat back down and pulled Abel’s shaking body into

his arms. “You could never get rid of me. I…” Elias clamped his
mouth shut. He just about confessed his love for Abel but stopped
himself. Abel had said he wanted to move slow, and the last thing
Elias wanted to do was scare his timid mate.

“What, Elias? Tell me?” There was a pleading in Abel’s swollen

eyes that broke Elias’s heart. He wasn’t sure what had caused his
mate to act this way but it was his job to alleviate his mate’s fears.

“I love you, Abel.” He kissed Abel gently on the nose. “Will you

please talk to me? What has gotten you so upset?” Abel leaned into
him, tucking his face into Elias’s shoulder. Elias rubbed his hands up
and down Abel’s back trying to calm him down.

“I love you, too,” Abel said as he sat up enough to meet Elias’s

worried eyes. He then leaned forward to kiss Elias on the lips. His
hot, moist breath fanned over Elias’s skin, sending chills down his
back. To hear Abel’s own declaration drowned out the tension
surrounding Elias. He raised his hands to press against Elias’s cheeks.
“I want you to make love to me.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

“What?” Elias pulled back. “Are you sure, Abel?”
“Yes, I’m sure.” Abel wiped a hand over his eyes. “I want you,

Elias, tonight and forever. Please show me what it’s like to be loved
by you.”

Elias had been waiting for Abel to request this of him and he was

too selfish to refuse Abel or himself.

Elias claimed Abel’s lips in a hard kiss, letting his tongue explore

the deepest depths of his lover’s mouth. Abel wrapped his arms
tightly around Elias’s back, pulling him down on top of him. Elias
used his knee to part Abel’s thighs and sunk down to cover his mate
in his body heat.

Abel’s hands moved in a frantic motion, as if he couldn’t touch

Elias enough. He liked it but it wasn’t how Abel usually acted.
Something had upset him but Abel didn’t want to discuss it. It seemed
his lover needed to be shown how much Elias loved him and he
would do just that.

Elias broke the kiss and slowly worked his way down Abel’s neck

to his shoulder, then down his chest. He flicked his tongue over one
hardened nipple, then moved over to the other and sucked on the
tanned, pebbled flesh. Abel groaned and whimpered with each touch
Elias laid upon his body. It made Elias’s cock harden to the point of
pain. He wanted so badly to thrust his cock deep inside Abel but he
had to go slow. If he fucked this up he’d never forgive himself.

He continued his way down Abel’s body. He glanced up to see

that Abel had curled his fingers into the sheets beside his head, eyes
closed, just enjoying Elias’s touch. Elias found that extremely sexy
and his cock leaked more pre-cum.

When Elias reached Abel’s cock, he kissed the tip lightly, then

stuck out his tongue to taste his lover’s sweet flavor. Abel moaned
and jerked his hips but otherwise held still while Elias had his fun.
Elias moved his hands up and down Abel’s thighs as he teased the
blunt head, sticking his tongue in the small slit, pulling more cum
from his lover.

AJ Jarrett

Elias’s cock tightened with each sweet moan and gasp yanked

from Abel’s throat. A growl vibrated from deep in his throat and he
used his hands to push on the underside of Abel’s thighs, pulling him
upward, exposing his pale, round ass. In the crease his pink pucker
stared up at him and Elias wanted it. He wanted to taste it, feel the
ridged grooves on his tongue, so he did just that.

Abel’s back arched at the first wet swipe of Elias’s tongue. The

clean taste of his mate had Elias pressing his tongue at the small
opening. He breached the muscle and panted heavily against Abel’s
flesh.

“Elias.” Abel groaned. “More,” Abel demanded.
Elias licked and sucked around Abel’s ring and then added a

finger, sinking deep into his scalding heat. Even after a week of
playing with Abel’s virgin hole he was still very tight. Abel clenched
around his finger and Elias used his tongue to distract him and put his
other hand on Abel’s cock.

The heat pooling in his balls made Elias’s movements jerking. He

needed to be inside Abel and soon.

“Please, Elias, make love to me,” Abel said breathlessly as he

fucked his ass down onto Elias’s fingers. He had worked up to two,
scissoring them in and out.

Elias slipped his fingers from Abel’s ass and reached for the

nightstand drawer. He yanked so hard the drawer toppled over onto
the floor. Elias cursed under his breath and reached down for the tube
of lubricant he and Abel used when jerking each other off. He sat
back up between Abel’s legs, flipped the cap, and poured a generous
amount into his hand.

Abel watched him with needy eyes. He’d never seen his lover like

this before. Abel’s circled his hips and ran a hand up and down his
cock. Elias thought he might come from that alone, watching
something so erotic from someone who was so innocent.

Elias slicked his cock then used the rest to push inside Abel. He

covered Abel’s entrance, pushing his finger far enough to rub over his

Elias's Clueless Witch

sweet spot. Abel moaned and let his knees fall wide, opening even
more for Elias.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” Elias said. He grabbed the base of

his cock and lined it up to Abel’s hole. He glanced up, watching
Abel’s face, then slowly pushed the thick head inside. It popped
through the tight muscle and Abel held still.

“Uh,” Abel gasped, eyes clenched tight, and his chest heaved up

and down rapidly.

“Do you want me to stop?” Elias started to pull out but Abel

locked his legs around Elias’s back and forced him forward, causing
his dick to slide the rest of the way home. “Abel,” Elias groaned.
“You okay?”

“Yes.” Abel reached for him and Elias fell forward. “Make love to

me, Elias.” Abel used his fingers to push Elias’s hair off his forehead.
“Make us one.”

Elias captured Abel’s lips and slowly pulled his length out, only

leaving in the head, then pushed back inside. Elias kept up a nice
steady rhythm, not too fast, not too slow. It drove him crazy with need
but he didn’t want to hurt Abel or ruin his first time, their first time
together.

“I want to complete the mating bond, Abel,” Elias whispered

harshly into Abel’s ear. His teeth had lengthened to sharp points and
his body felt tight. The cougar within him demanded he claim his
mate. “Will you let me?”

Abel stared up at him with glossy eyes, sparkling bright with love

and desire. “Yes.”

At Abel’s given permission, Elias lunged forward. He sunk his

teeth into Abel’s shoulder, hard enough to draw blood. Abel shouted
and his hips bucked up off the bed. Elias could feel his lover’s cock
pulsing right near release, so he reached down and squeezed the base
of Abel’s cock. They were going to come together.

Elias drank deeply from the bite he gifted Abel with, then pulled

back. Blood dripped from his chin. Abel stared up at him with

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unabashed desire and sat up enough to lick at his chin. Elias moaned
and dipped his head down to kiss Abel, hard and deep.

The kiss lingered for a few moments but Elias pulled back. He

brought his wrist up to his mouth and bit down. Blood rose to the
surface and dripped down to splash onto Abel stomach. Elias swiped
his hand through the blood on Abel’s neck, then the wound on his
wrist. He pulled his slick cock free from Abel’s body and smeared the
combination over the head then pressed back inside.

“Why the blood?” Abel asked, his eye rolling back in his head as

Elias started to move again.

“The mating bond requires it. Blood.” Elias grunted as his orgasm

coiled in his balls. “Sex.” Another hard grunt and thrust of his hips.
“Magic.”

Elias reached for Abel’s hard cock and moved his palm up and

down the throbbing length. Abel jerked and whimpered as he gave
himself over to Elias. He could feel the pulse in Abel’s ass quicken
and the tightening of his muscles, so Elias pounded him harder until
they both couldn’t hold on any longer. The first spurt of cum shot so
hard and fast from Abel’s cock it hit the pillow next to his head, then
a glop landed on his chin.

Elias’s spunk exploded from his cock, painting all of Abel’s

internal walls. The whole world would now know who Abel belonged
to.

As his release subsided and his cock softened, Elias eased out of

Abel. His mate let out a soft hiss, then rolled to lay his head on Elias’s
chest.

“Is it done?” Abel asked, twirling his fingers through the light

dusting of hair on Elias’s chest.

“Yes, Abel.” Elias kissed the top of Abel’s head. “We are now

one.”

“I like the sound of that.” Abel reached down and pulled the

blanket up the bed, covering their bodies.

Elias's Clueless Witch

“Me, too, my love, me, too.” Elias tightened his hold on Abel. “I

love you, Abel.”

“I love you, too.”
They didn’t say another word as they both drifted off to sleep.

Elias’s body hummed with power and love as his eyes fell shut on
another day.

AJ Jarrett

Chapter Eleven

“Good morning.”
Abel opened his eyes to see Elias staring down at him, a huge

smile on his handsome face, and it made Abel smile in return.
“Morning.” Abel rolled to his back and stretched. He winced at the
slight ache in his ass. It wasn’t that it hurt really bad, just a reminder
of what he’d done the night before.

“Hey, you okay?” Elias sat up and rubbed his hand over Abel’s

stomach. “We paranormals heal fast but still you might be a little
sore.”

“I feel great.” Abel propped himself up and kissed Elias on the

lips. “Better than great.”

His dream the previous night had shook Abel to his core. The pain

and sadness he saw in Ash’s eyes and the way Benny just walked
away, it wasn’t right. If they were so in love, shouldn't have Benny
fought for Ash and shouldn’t have Ash done the same? Abel was sick
and tired of his sleep being disrupted by glimpses of his father’s past
but he couldn’t help but wonder what happened next.

All the stories he’d heard from the warriors at the compound were

all the same. They said that his father hated Benedict so much, and his
quest to stay young and strong forever had a witch turn him into a
vampire, but she not only turned Asher. She turned the people of
Benedict’s village and Benedict. This caused an uprising which also
caused paranormals seeking justice for the wrongs committed against
them to form the council of paranormal beings. People wanted to
police the paranormals of the world and stop witches from turning

Elias's Clueless Witch

innocent people. Technically Abel’s father wasn’t the first paranormal
in existence but he just so happened to piss off the wrong people.

“Good.” Elias kissed Abel again, then traced his finger over

Abel’s lips. “Are you really okay with what we did last night?” Elias
asked in a soft low voice. “Not just the sex but the mating ritual?”
Elias’s kept his eyes trained down at the center of Abel’s chest.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Abel tilted Elias’s chin up so he could meet

his lover’s eyes. “I’ve been waiting my whole life to feel like this, to
be loved like this.” Abel’s upper lip tugged at the corners. “Granted, I
didn’t know I needed to be bitten and blood would be involved, but
hey, I survived.” It hadn’t been what he expected, no, it had been
better. Abel had built sex up to be this big scary monster but Elias
took his time and made it easy on Abel.

“Yes, you did.” Elias cupped his palm on Abel’s cheek. “We

don’t have to do any more blood play, but the biting?” Elias made a
clicking sound with his tongue and chuckled. “Maybe it’s the animal
in me but I kind of like biting you.” Elias ran his finger over the
healing bite mark on his neck. “Leaving my mark on this beautiful
skin of yours turns me on.”

“I think I’m okay with that when you put it that way.” Abel leaned

in for another kiss.

Elias turned away from Abel and climbed out of bed. He turned

around and held his hand out to Abel. “Come on, we should get up
and get ready. I’m sure Quinn has a fun-filled day planned for you.”

Abel groaned and fell back on the bed and threw his arm up to

cover his eyes. “I take it back. I don’t love you.” Abel teased and
pulled his arm back a little to see Elias’s face.

“Like hell you don’t.” Elias jumped on the bed, tackling Abel.
They wrestled for a few minutes, then it turned to long lingering

kisses and sensual touches. Before Abel knew it they were making
love again and he welcomed the now familiar burn and flooding of
emotions he felt every time they came together.

AJ Jarrett

* * * *

When Abel lay down in bed that night he could barely stay awake

long enough to say goodnight to Elias. It had been a long day of
training and Abel’s body was sore and exhaustion had him feeling
weak.

Quinn had taken it easy on him that day. He had Abel run a couple

miles around the property, of course Elias stayed by his side the
whole time. Then they lifted weights in the gym in the basement of
the house. He didn’t have to use his powers at all today but he was
forced to use his body and strength, something Abel wasn’t that good
at. He was a fit guy, but he wasn’t a weight lifter or even a guy who
liked going to the gym.

After eating dinner with the rest of the warriors, Elias and Abel

had gone to their room. They showered together and Elias introduced
Abel to the joys of having sex in the shower and while standing up.
Elias had thoroughly used his body and Abel ached in all the right
places, but as much fun as that had been he couldn’t keep his eyes
open any longer.

“Hey, Asher, you working tonight?”
“You know it!” Asher forced a smile to one of the other dancers.

He walked through the crowd to the dressing rooms. The music
blared from the speakers and Asher worked his way through the
swarm of dancing bodies filling the dance floor.

Asher stepped through the door marked employees only and a

rush of cool air hit his body. It was a delightful change from the warm
moist air in the main room. He walked over to his locker and pulled
out a tiny pair of boy shorts, fire engine red, and began to change.

Asher glanced in the mirror, finger combed his hair, then went

back out to the crowded dance floor. He headed over to one of the
mini platforms and hoped on top. The song had changed to a fast-
paced rhythm and Asher let his body move. He held on to the metal

Elias's Clueless Witch

pole in the center and bent his knees and swayed his hips from side to
side.

The place was jammed packed with people, but Asher didn’t give

any of them a second glance. He only had eyes for one person. He
found his target and waved at the other man. Asher smiled seductively
and snaked his tongue out to moisten his already slick lips and blew a
kiss in the man’s direction.

The man had short black hair and even blacker eyes. The flashing

strobe light swirled multicolor light around the room and a beam of
bright yellow moved over the man’s face and two pointed teeth peeked
out from under his upper lip.

Asher’s smile fell from his lips and a determined look overcame

his face.

Abel came to with a start. Bright light streamed through the

opened blinds of his window. He glanced at the clock to see it was
only seven in the morning, still early. Beside him he could feel the
heat from Elias’s body as his arm circled his chest.

Very carefully Abel eased out from under Elias’s arm and made

his way to the bathroom. He flipped on the switch and stared at his
reflection.

“What the hell did I just dream about?” Abel closed his eyes and

replayed the dream in his mind.

A crowded bar, people dancing, and his father half naked dancing

for the crowd. It didn’t make since.

Abel clenched his eyes tighter and the vivid images didn’t change

or waver. It was present date, it had to be. The way everyone was
dressed and the music playing over the speakers, but what did it mean
and who was the man his father had made eye contact with?

“Babe, you okay?” Elias’s voice came through the door.
Abel glanced at himself one more time in the mirror. No, he

wasn’t okay but he didn’t know what the dreams meant, if they even
meant anything. “Yeah.” Abel opened the door. “I’m good.”

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Abel let Elias pull him into a hug and he so badly wanted to tell

his mate the things he’d been seeing in his dreams but he couldn’t.
What if Elias and the others thought he was crazy or that he was in
fact losing his mind? It was too much a risk and too much a risk to his
father as well. These warriors were nice to him but he wasn’t
delusional enough to think that they all believed his father to be
innocent of the crimes hanging over his head. No, for his own
protection and his father’s he’d keep his mouth shut. For all he knew
he was just having weird dreams.

After a quick shower, Abel let Elias lead him downstairs to eat

breakfast. They ran into Quinn and he told Abel to take the day off.
Abel wasn’t going to kick a gift horse in the mouth so he just smiled
and nodded his head.

But Elias wasn’t as lucky. Carlos and Josh, the warriors that had

befriended Abel and brought him here to the warrior’s compound,
were flying in today and Ben wanted Elias to sit in on a debriefing
with them. So that meant Abel was on his own for the day.

After he ate, Abel roamed around the house, not sure what to do

with himself. His mind kept racing with images of the dreams he’d
been having for the past week but they didn’t seem like dreams but
more like bits and pieces of someone’s memory. It was a crazy thing
to think.

“Hello there, my fellow witch.” Carter, a witch that could see into

people’s pasts, sat in the library Abel hadn’t realized he’d walked
into. “Whatcha doing?” Carter sat up from where he was laying on the
leather couch and faced Abel. “You got a weird look on your face.”

“Nothing.” Abel shook his head and shoved his hands into his

pockets. “Quinn gave me the day off so I’m just wandering around
with nothing to do.”

“After what I’ve seen Quinn putting you through, I’d say being

bored is a lot better than spending the day with him.” Carter patted the
cushion on the couch and Abel moved to sit on the other end.
“Congratulations on your mating.”

Elias's Clueless Witch

101

“You know about that?” Abel whipped his head around to stare at

the other witch. “But how?”

“Elias.” Carter grinned. “I think he was so excited he couldn’t

keep it in and told everyone he saw. He asked us not to say anything
to you because he wasn’t sure you’d be okay with us all knowing.”
Carter tucked his dark brown hair behind his ears. “He’s such an
intense guy, it’s nice to see him smile and be happy. I can see that he
really cares for you.”

“I care a lot about him, too.” Abel’s cheeks filled with heat. “I

never knew being in love could feel this way.”

“Yeah, it’s an ass kicker. One moment you’re living a normal and

uncomplicated life and the next thing you know, bam! Everything
changes, but in a good way.” Carter smiled. “I never thought I’d find
a mate but then I met Abner and I can’t picture my life without him.”
Carter stayed quiet for a moment longer, then turned to Abel. “So
have any more powers showed up since you’ve mated with Elias?”

“Excuse me?” Abel turned around and pulled his legs up on the

couch, knees to his chest. What was Carter asking him? Was he
supposed to get more powers with the mating?

“When two paranormals become mated, they grow stronger and

with witches, or at least in my case, I gained better control of my
current power and developed another.”

“What was it?” Abel had heard that Carter could look into a

person’s past and pick through their memories, but what else could he
do?

“You know that I can read a person’s past, right?” Abel nodded.

“Well even before I mated with Abner I could feel my powers getting
stronger. I wasn’t sure how it was happening since we hadn't, ya
know, completed the blood-sex-magic ritual.” Abel nodded again.
“I’d been asked to look through this guy’s room. He’d kidnapped
another warrior’s mate so naturally I wanted to help any way I could.
So we go to this guy’s house and the minute I walk through the door I
can hear someone calling out to me. Little did I know it was a ghost

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from this guy’s past. He helped me stop that psycho before he was
able to hurt anyone.” Carter blew out a sigh. “Pretty freaky but it
comes in handy at times. I can’t always make it happen but it’s there
if I need it.”

“That sounds…scary.” Abel chuckled. “I don’t think I’d like that

too much.”

“Most people wouldn’t.” Carter turned on the couch to sit facing

Abel. “But you got that cool freezing power. Has anything intensified
with it since you mated Elias?”

“I don’t think so.” Abel shook his head and it was as if something

had been knocked loose. He did seem to be able to control his power
better, but also the dreams. They hadn’t started until he met Elias.
Could it be this was a power and Abel was in fact seeing his father’s
memoires? But what about the dream last night? That seemed to be in
current time, as if it were happening now.

“Hey, give it time.” Carter nudged him with his foot. “Your

powers have been practically sitting dormant for sixty years, so it’ll
take some time. Just be open to it when it happens. You can’t fight
who you really are, Abel. You’re a nice guy and will be a great witch
one day.” He leaned in and whispered, “I personally don’t believe all
that shit the others think about your dad. If he was this all and
powerful guy, why wouldn’t he fight and take the Warriors of the
Light down? It doesn’t make since.”

Abel agreed, it didn’t, but he couldn’t make someone believe

something he fought so hard against. It wasn’t his job. He knew what
he knew and that’s all that mattered. “It doesn’t but hopefully one day
my dad can clear his name.”

“Me too, because honestly I’m dying to know what the contention

between Asher and Benedict is. I’ve overheard Ben and Quinn talking
about and it makes a guy wonder.” Carter narrowed his eyes at Abel
as if trying to read his mind.

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Abel wasn’t for sure if Carter could poke through his head and see

the dreams he’d been having but he wasn’t taking any chances. He
raised his hands and flicked it at Carter and the witch froze.

“Sorry, Carter,” Abel whispered as he walked out of the room and

ran up the stairs to his room.

He shut the door and leaned against it. If what Carter said were

true, then these dreams he’d been having did mean something. But
what, was the question? The last dream he’d had bothered him the
most because it wasn’t from Asher’s past. The look on his father’s
face when he stared at the dark-haired man at that bar looked deadly.
Something inside him told him his father was in danger.

Not knowing what else to do, Abel climbed up on his bed and laid

down. He needed to fall asleep and hopefully he’d see more of what
Asher was up to.

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Chapter Twelve

Elias looked over at the clock on the wall. It was just after five

and he’d been sitting in Ben’s office for the better part of the day.
Carlos and Josh had come back from a scouting mission. They were
trying to track down information on Asher’s whereabouts in hopes the
man could lead them to Benedict.

The more Elias thought about it, he didn’t believe Asher had

Benedict. Maybe he was just being a fool but after meeting and falling
for Abel, he couldn’t believe that sweet and innocent Abel could
come from someone thought to be so evil. The other thing that
seemed off was the photos Benedict kept of Asher. In all Elias’s years
working for the council, which granted wasn’t long, he never heard
Benedict demand a kill order on Asher. Benedict was all about
finding Asher but never were they to lay a finger on him. Now that he
thought about it, it seemed rather fishy.

“We’ve had some tips that people claim to have spotted Asher in

Denver and Las Vegas but nothing concrete to go on.” Carlos looked
to Ben.

“Of course he’d be in highly populated cities.” Ben chuckled but

the sound wasn’t one of humor but of frustration. “This is just fucking
great!” He slammed his hand down on his desk top. “How the hell can
we not find this vampire?”

“Ben, man, relax.” Quinn sat up in his chair. “You can’t blame

yourself for any of this. Your father tried for years to find Asher and
he couldn’t do it either. Asher’s like a needle in a haystack.”

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“But we have his son for fuck’s sake!” Ben fisted his fingers in his

hair. “Doesn’t he want to make sure his kid is all right and that we
haven’t, I don’t know, killed him?”

Elias flinched at that comment. He’d rip out every last person’s

throat in this room if they so much as laid a finger on Abel. A low
roar vibrated up his throat and Ben cut his eyes to Elias.

“Shit, I’m sorry, Elias. I’d never hurt Abel, I’m just baffled that

Asher wouldn’t try to contact him to at least make sure he’s okay.”
Ben tilted his head to the side and studied Elias for a moment. “He
hasn’t contacted him, has he?”

“No!” Elias shouted, his chest rising and falling faster with each

breath. “And you’d know if he had because Abel wouldn’t keep
something like that from me or you. He, more than anyone, wants to
hear from Asher. He’s desperate to prove his father is innocent of the
crimes held against him.”

Elias knew they were just doing their job by questioning every

possible scenario but damn it pissed him off. He trusted Abel with his
life and his love. The man wouldn’t betray Elias’s trust or those of the
other warriors.

“I’m sorry, E,” Ben apologized. “I’m just worried about my dad.

It’s been over two months now. I fear the more time that passes we’ll
never find him.”

“I understand, Ben, but don’t lose hope,” Elias offered, not sure if

he even believed what he said. In the human world the police say after
forty-eight hours they’re looking for a body, not an actual live person.

Ben called the meeting and Elias went up to his room to see what

Abel was doing. When he opened the door, Abel sat on the edge of
the bed. His lips were pinched tightly together, and he had handfuls of
the comforter knotted in his hands.

“Everything all right in here?” Elias squatted down in front of

Abel. He raised his hand to smooth out the lines wrinkling his mate’s
forehead.

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“Yeah, great!” Elias could tell that Abel was forcing the smile on

his lips. It didn’t quite meet his eyes. “Is dinner ready?”

“I think so.” Elias stood up and held out his hand for Abel.

Something was definitely off with his mate but he wasn’t going to
pry. For all he knew Abel had been sitting outside Ben’s office door
and heard every word they said. “I love you, Abe.” Elias wrapped his
arms around Abel, letting the man feel the affection he had for him.
As long as he was around, Elias wouldn’t let anything happen to his
mate, nothing.

“I love you, too.” Abel’s arms were like metal bands surrounding

him. His hold was so tight Elias’s back popped in places. “Now let’s
go eat.” Abel pulled away first and took Elias by the hand and
escorted him to the dining room.

The warriors had started to enter the room and take their chairs.

He watched as Abel went to give Josh and Carlos hugs, then sat next
to them. Elias walked over to Colby to say hi. The little guy wasn’t so
little anymore. It appeared the little boy grew more and more each day
faster than a human child.

Trevor and Miles came into the dining room carrying dishes of

food. They sat them on the table and everyone waited until they were
seated before they started to fill their plates.

Elias sat close to Abel and his mate leaned into his side. He

propped his arm over the back of Abel’s chair and tried his best to
relax.

“Colby, no!” Miles shouted and Elias turned to look at the little

boy. Colby had stood up in his high chair and was bent over the tray.
He had a hand on a large salad bowl, pulling it off the table.

In a blink of an eye the little boy went still. Miles looked from his

son to Ben then back again.

“Did you just freeze my son?” Ben asked Abel.
Elias looked from Colby back to Abel to see his mate’s hand in

the air, pointing at Colby.

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“Sorry, I was just trying to help.” Abel’s cheeks burned a bright

crimson.

“Can you undo that?” Miles waved his hands around where his

son was frozen like a statue.

“I can try.” Abel started to wave his hand when both Miles and

Ben shouted “stop”.

“Let me grab that bowl before you try and unfreeze him, okay.”

Miles snatched the bowl from Colby’s tiny fist and set it on the table.

The whole table watched as Abel waved his hand and Colby came

back to life in a flurry of movement.

“That’s amazing, Abel.” Carlos patted Abel on the shoulder.

“When did you learn to unfreeze your targets?”

“Yes, when did you learn that?” Quinn asked, his eyes narrowed

at Abel. “We’ve been trying that for the last four days and no luck.”

“I’m not sure how I did it.” Abel looked around to the expectant

faces. “I just concentrated really hard and it happened.”

“I’m just impressed he didn’t freeze the whole damn table,”

Trevor teased. “Now can we please get back to dinner before it gets
cold.”

Conversations were picked up where they were left off and the

noise grew louder around the table. Elias stared out of the corner of
his eye at Abel. He had his head down and his cheeks had faded to a
bright pink. Elias reached over and grabbed his hand.

“It’s okay, Abe. You did a good thing.” Elias leaned to the side

and kissed his mate’s cheek. “It’s awesome that you can unfreeze
things now.”

“I froze their son. I don’t think they’ll be sending me a thank you

card any time soon,” Abel whispered under his breath.

“They should.” Elias reached for Abel’s hand and squeezed.

“Think of the mess that would have made. They should want you to
walk behind Colby all the time and freeze his little butt every time he
goes to make a mess. I bet Miles would love that.”

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“I would.” Miles flashed a smile in their direction. He had situated

Colby back in his chair and was trying to feed the little guy.

“See, no harm no foul.” Elias brushed his lips over Abel’s one last

time. “Now eat before it gets cold.”

After dinner Abel wanted to go back to their room. Elias knew his

mate felt uncomfortable for freezing Colby like that but he shouldn’t.
Abel just reacted and it wasn’t as if it hurt the kid.

Once back in their room Abel shut and locked the door. “Make

love to me.”

Elias spun around to face his mate. Abel had his shirt over his

head and was now working on his jeans.

“Abel is something bothering you?” Not that Elias didn’t want to

have sex but…

“Nothing is wrong.” Abel toed his shoes off and kicked his pants

off his legs. “I just want to feel you inside me.” Abel walked up to
Elias and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. “Is that so wrong?”

The hot press of Abel’s body made Elias’s go hard and stiff. “Not

in the least.”

Elias wound his arms around Abel’s waist and walked him back to

the bed. They fell in a tangle of arms and legs, kissing frantically.
Abel managed to get Elias out of his clothes without tearing anything.
Elias didn’t make it easy. He was a man out of control when it came
to Abel. He loved making love to his mate. Abel’s hot, tight hole fit
him like a glove and his soft body curled around him like a second
skin.

Abel pushed Elias over onto his back and reached for the lube in

the side table drawer. Elias watched as Abel slathered the clear gel
over his cock, then reached behind himself to finger his hole.

“Fuck, Abe.” Elias groaned. “What’s gotten into you?” Not that

he was complaining, but in the few times they had had sex, Elias had
been the aggressor and Abel let Elias run the show, but not now.

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“I just really want you.” Abel pulled his hand out from behind him

and crawled up Elias’s body. He grabbed the base of Elias’s cock and
held it up and slowly lowered his ass onto the hard shaft.

Elias hissed as the tight heat surrounded him as Abel sunk all the

way down. Abel’s head fell back on his shoulders and he whimpered
as his ass pulsed around Elias’s dick. Elias moved his hands up and
down Abel’s thighs in a light caress, hoping to distract him from the
pain.

In slow, steady moves, Abel raised up just a little then lowered

himself again. Elias and Abel both moaned at the intense feeling.
Abel’s muscles hugged his cock and tugged with every upward pull,
causing his release to claw to the surface.

Elias wrapped his hands around Abel’s hips and helped him move

faster. Abel’s cock bobbed up and down, smacking against his
stomach. Pre-cum leaked from the tip, a clear string of cum hanging
from the swollen head.

Abel moved his body faster and Elias thrust his hips up to meet

Abel’s ass. The sound of slapping skin filled the room along with
their needy moans.

“I’m close.” Abel fisted his cock and pumped in a fast motion.
“Come for me, Abe.” Elias licked his lips, eager to taste Abel and

to feel his body come undone around him. He liked the far-off look
Abel got in his eyes when he came. “Cover me in it.” Elias bucked up
harder. “Yeah, like that. Jack that cock.”

Abel whimpered, his head fell forward, and then his body tensed.

Ropes of white cum shot in wide arches over Elias’s body and the
warmth and sweet smell sent Elias over the cliff and into a tailspin of
sensations.

Elias’s seed shot out of his cock to fill Abel’s battered hole. He

could feel the slick glide as some seeped out to drip onto his balls.

Abel fell forward, gasping for breath. “That was fun.” He propped

up his elbows to stare into Elias’s eyes. “I love you, Elias. Of all
things to be certain of in this world, know that, okay?”

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There was a sadness in Abel’s bright green eyes that Elias wasn’t

sure where it came from. Abel’s eyes filled with unshed tears,
glowing in the dim light. Elias sat up to wrap his arms around his
lover’s back.

“Baby, please tell me what’s wrong?” Elias could feel the panic in

his chest build.

“Nothing’s wrong.” Abel bent down to kiss his lips. “I just love

you so much.” Abel chuckled. “I’ve never been happier in my life
than I am now.” Abel kissed him again.

Elias sucked in a breath as Abel started to circle his hips. Elias

still had his cock buried balls deep in Abel and his cock started to stir
for round two.

“Abe, baby, what are you doing?” Elias grinned against Abel’s

lips.

“Getting you hard again.” Abel moaned and moved his lips to

suck on Elias’s neck. “And it seems to be working.”

“You ready for another go, Abe?” Elias nipped at Abel’s shoulder.

“You think you can take me again so soon?” Elias asked in a teasing
tone.

“I can take whatever you got, but can you take me again?”
Elias growled and flipped Abel over to where he was on top. He

thrust his hips forward and pounded into Abel’s ass. “Are you
challenging me?” Elias wound his arms under Abel’s shoulders to
hold him in place while he forced his hips harder and faster.

“Maybe.” Abel moaned and his eyes fell shut.
God, Elias loved this man so much. Abel was so innocent and

sweet yet times like now he surprised Elias and it made him love Abel
even more. “Challenge accepted.”

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Chapter Thirteen

Abel lay awake, listening to the soft snores coming from Elias.

They had sex a total of four times since they came up from dinner.
Abel had worn his mate out just like he’d hoped. If he hadn’t there
would be no way Elias would let him leave the house and head to Las
Vegas. He’d say it was too dangerous or worse, he’d tell Ben and
send a team of warriors to retrieve Asher and Abel would rather risk
himself than to put his father in the crosshairs of a bunch of pissed-off
warriors.

When Abel left Carter in the library and came back to his room he

laid down to take a nap, hoping that he was right and his powers had
expanded and he could now see into his father’s mind. If it hadn’t
been for that last dream where he saw his father dancing in a bar he
wouldn’t have thought anything of it, but that dreamed seemed a little
too real. It was as if Abel were there standing beside his father
watching the events unfold. It still sounded weird and crazy but it was
all Abel had to go on.

It took longer than Abel had wanted to fall asleep. His mind raced

with the possibility that he had truly lost his mind, but then it
happened.

He saw Asher moving along on a crowded street. The sun was out

and Asher wore a pair of dark sunglasses to protect his eyes from the
bright rays. He slowly walked down the busy sidewalk as if he didn’t
have a care in the world.

Abel could feel the warmth and the sharp brightness of the sun as

it beamed down on the earth. Once again it felt like he was there.

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In the distance Abel made out large buildings that sat in a long

line. It took a moment but Abel realized he was looking at the strip in
Las Vegas. It had been years since he’d been there, but that was
where Asher was. All the large and beautiful hotels flanked the sides
of the main street but Asher didn’t stop at any of them.

On a flashing sign Abel caught the time, temperature, and the

date. Today’s date to be exact. Asher kept on moving, then came to a
crosswalk and stopped. He started walking again when the light
flashed green and headed for a large warehouse-looking building. The
sign said Club Steel. Asher had just walked through the door when
Abel woke up.

For reasons he still didn’t understand, he had to go to his father.

He didn’t owe Asher anything but he wanted to try and convince his
father to come back with him. To explain to the Warriors of the Light
that he wasn’t this heartless and soulless bastard they thought him to
be.

Ben and the others seemed to like him well enough, but he was

still an outsider, Asher Guillory’s son. He didn’t want to go to them
for help because who’s to say they wouldn’t just react when they saw
his father instead of listening to what he had to say?

Then there was Elias. Abel couldn’t put him in that position to

choose between his mate and his friends. It wouldn’t be fair to Elias,
so Abel had to do this on his own. He knew that he needed to be
careful and watch out for dark warriors but with his powers working
better now he wasn’t as afraid to leave the safety of the compound.

As carefully as he could, Abel slipped out from under Elias’s arm.

He quickly got dressed and pulled out the suitcase he’d shoved under
the bed earlier. He walked softly to the door and hesitated for a
second to look at his mate one more time. He prayed that Elias would
forgive him for this. Besides running off in the middle of the night,
he’d have to freeze him. The one thing Elias hated most.

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“I’m sorry.” Abel stepped out of the room and shut the door. He

took a deep breath and raised his hands in the air. Power flowed from
his fingertips and Abel’s body hummed from the release it gave him.

The house stood silent, everything frozen. Abel picked up his bag

and hurried down the stairs. He still didn’t know how long his
freezing power lasted but he figured if he did it at night everyone
would most likely be asleep anyways so they wouldn’t know he was
gone until morning, which gave Abel plenty of time to get away.
Hopefully he could convince his father to come back with him and be
back by the next afternoon. Doubtful, but it could happen.

All the lights were off and Abel didn’t bother turning any on. His

eyes had adjusted to the darkness and even without that he could still
see pretty clearly in the dark. It must be a paranormal trait or
something. Abel shrugged and walked in a fast clip toward the garage.

His heart pounded in his chest. Even though he knew everyone to

be asleep, he was still petrified. What if his power wore off too soon?

Not wanting to think about it, Abel grabbed a set of keys off the

hanging hooks by the door. It was Trevor’s car. Of all the people in
the house, Abel felt Trevor would be less likely to hold a grudge. He
just needed the car to get him to the airport, then he’d park it safely
where it could be found.

Abel hustled over to Trevor’s car and climbed inside. He adjusted

the seat and mirrors then hit the button for the garage door opener,
wincing at the sound. Abel put the key in the ignition and turned over
the engine. The car came to life with a soft hum and he reversed out
into the dark night.

Abel pulled all the way out then put the car into drive and turned

the wheel to head down the driveway. He glanced over his shoulder to
look at the large house he’d called home for such a short time and his
heart broke a little for what he was leaving behind. Abel turned back
around to see a streak of movement cross the stream of his headlights.
A loud thud smacked against the hood of Trevor’s car and Abel
screamed.

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“Where do you think you’re going?” Elias, in only his jeans,

crouched on top of Trevor’s hood, glaring down at Abel.

Shit!

* * * *

Elias rolled over onto his stomach and reached for Abel but his

hand grabbed nothing but air. He sat up, rubbed his eyes and looked
to Abel’s side of the bed. It was empty. Elias glanced in the direction
of the bathroom to see the door wide open and dark.

“Abel,” Elias said into the empty room.
Elias got out of bed and pulled on his jeans. He stepped out into

the hallway and the first thing that hit him was how quiet it was. In all
his years living with these warriors it had never been this quiet even at
night. Someone was always up wandering around, but not tonight.

Taking the stairs two at a time he hustled down to the main living

room. He passed by and saw the back of someone’s head and the TV
paused on the screen.

“Huh.” Elias stepped into the room and saw Toby sitting on the

couch, his hand raised to his mouth with popcorn in it. “Toby.” When
he didn’t answer Elias said his name a little louder, but still nothing.
When he stood directly in front of Toby he realized the young man
wasn’t ignoring him, he was frozen along with the TV. “Abel!”

Elias heard the garage door open and ran for the front door and

threw it open. He saw the taillights of Trevor’s car as it reversed out
of the garage. It might be Trevor’s car but it wasn’t Trevor sitting
behind the wheel. It was Abel. Elias took off at a fast sprint toward
the car. Abel put the car into drive and Elias had to leap into the air to
get in front of the vehicle.

Abel screamed and jumped in his seat but Elias didn’t give a shit.

His mate was leaving the house, alone, with no one to protect him.
And to top it off he was leaving without Elias.

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“Get out of the car.” Elias’s words came out garbled as his mouth

filled with teeth. The cougar wanted out, wanted its mate to submit to
him and right about now Elias was completely on board with his
animal half.

“Elias what are you doing out here?” Abel glanced over his

shoulder back toward the house, raising a hand to scratch his head.
“It’s late.”

“I could say the same to you.” Elias shoved Abel, none too gently,

out of the way of the open door and turned off the car, pocketing the
keys.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Abel tried to reach for the keys.
“You do not get to ask any questions.” Elias hand tightened on the

metal door and his claws scraped the paint. It took everything in side
of Elias not to rip the damn thing off its hinges. “I get that privilege.”
Elias took a deep breath, closed the door, then turned around to lean
on it.

Abel fidgeted with his hands and looked anywhere but at Elias.

Not a good sign. He could tell that his mate was hiding something
from him and Elias didn’t like it. It made Abel seem very guilty, but
of what? He had yet to discover.

“I’m going to ask you this one time.” Elias fisted his hands, letting

his sharp nails dig into his palms. The sting helped calm him down
and distract him. “Where were you going? And don’t tell me
nowhere. You froze that entire house to get away and I want to know
why.”

“Well…I…” Abel pointed toward the house then the car. “I

was…”

“Don’t fucking lie to me,” Elias whispered in a low tone, trying

his best to reign in his temper. “Do you not realize how dangerous it
is out there away from the warrior’s compound?” Elias waved off
Abel’s attempt to speak. “Don't answer that. Just tell me why, Abel.
Why are you leaving me?”

“Leaving you?” Abel snapped. “I’m not leaving you. I’m just—”

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“Just what?” Elias crossed his arms over his chest. “Because to

me it looks like you’re running away, but why?”

Abel’s cheeks reddened and his eyes narrowed at Elias. His breath

came out in sharp pants. “I’m not running away, okay? There’s
something I need to do, so if you would please give me back my keys
and I’ll be on my way.” Abel held his hand out as if that was all he
had to do was ask for his keys back.

Elias started to laugh. “You are fucking crazy if you think you are

going anywhere, especially without me.”

“Elias, I don’t have time for this. Either give me the damn keys or

I’ll just start walking.” Abel kept his hand held out and tapped his
foot. When Elias didn’t hand over the keys he said, “Fine. I’ll walk.”

“Oh like hell you will.” Elias grabbed Abel by the shoulder and

spun him around, pinning him to the side of the car. Abel’s eyes
narrowed and he raised his hands, flicking them at Elias. Elias could
see the blue flashes of light coming out of his fingertips but nothing
was happening. He can’t freeze me. Elias smiled and moved his hands
down to wrap around Abel’s wrist. “Please tell me you’re not trying
to freeze me?”

“Why isn’t it working?” Abel grunted and tried to pull away.
“First off, I’m insulted that you would even attempt to freeze me,

your mate. Secondly, I think since we completed the mating bond you
can’t do that to me anymore. I’m immune, it would seem.” Elias
started to laugh.

“It’s not funny,” Abel pouted, still squirming under Elias’s hold.
“Oh yeah it is.” Elias lightly banged Abel’s hands down on the car

to stop him from moving. “Now tell me where you were going and
don’t bother trying to lie.”

Abel fought his hold one more time then sagged in defeat against

the car. “Fine, but will you please just let me go? My wrists are
starting to hurt.” Elias gave Abel a warning glare then let go. “Thank
you.” Abel slid down the side of the car to sit on his butt. He ran his

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fingers over his face, then clasped his hands in his hair. “It started
with the dreams.”

“Dreams?” Elias sat down next to Abel on the hard ground.
“Yeah, dreams.” Abel glanced over at him. “At first I thought

there were just random dreams but I started to notice a theme.”

“And that was?” Elias asked.
“They all involved my dad and Benedict.” Abel turned to look out

into the dark yard. “It was from when they were younger, they were
memories, I think.” A soft smile curled Abel’s lips. “They were so in
love.” Abel let his head fall back against the car. “But because of the
times and Benedict’s dad being a dick they couldn’t be together.” He
motioned toward the house. “And I guess the rest is history. Benedict
obviously married a woman, had Ben, and never saw my dad again.”

“Fuck.” Elias didn’t know whether to believe Abel or not, but why

would he lie about something like that?

“Yeah, pretty much.” Abel brought his knees up to rest his arms

on. “So my dreams for the past week had been like that just glimpses
into their past but two nights ago they started to change.”

“When we mated,” Elias said, and Abel nodded his head.
“I’m thinking so, yes. Well anyway, I started to see stuff that was

happening now in current time. They only took place when I was
asleep but they were more than just dreams. It was like I was there
with Asher, seeing everything he saw.” Abel’s body shook as if he
had a chill.

Elias didn’t speak for a long moment, unsure what to say. His

mate thought he was connecting with his father who he hadn’t seen in
over fifty years. It didn’t seem probable, but Abel was a witch and in
a world of magic anything was possible.

“So what did you see, Abel?”
Abel shifted around to face Elias head on and reached for his

hand. “If I tell you will you promise not to run and tell Ben?” Abel
looked over his shoulder toward the house, then back to Elias.

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Elias hated to promise something that had the potential to be

disastrous, but what other choice did he have? “Okay, I promise.”

“My dad is in Las Vegas.”
“Vegas?” Elias’s head jerked to the side. “What the fuck is he

doing there?”

“I’m not sure, but in my last dream I saw it. He passed one of

those flashing billboard signs that have the time and date and it was
today’s date and time. Then I saw him walking toward this bar or at
least that was what it looked like to me. Club Steel. I think he works
there as one of those dancing go-go boys.” Abel looked away from
Elias as if embarrassed.

Elias took a minute to process all this. “So what you are saying is

you believe that your father, Asher, is in Las Vegas working as a go-
go dancer?” Abel nodded his head. “This just keeps getting weirder
and weirder.”

“You can think it’s weird all you want.” Abel dropped Elias hand

and stood up. “But I’m going out there. I need to find my father and
convince him to come back here.”

“Hey, calm down.” Elias held his hands up. “I understand he’s

your only living parent and you want to see him, but why on earth
would you want to bring him back here? Not that I don’t think he
should turn himself in, but they all think he knows where Benedict is.
They won’t go easy on him.” Elias felt like he was betraying his
friends but he knew how they’d react because it would be the same
way he’d react given the circumstances.

“I know that but I think he’d be safer here than out there.” Abel’s

eyes grew shiny with unshed tears. “I need to go to him. I can sense
he’s in danger. I have to help him, Elias.” Abel lost the battle with his
tears and started to cry.

Elias pulled Abel into his arms and rubbed his hands up and down

his back trying to sooth him. The last thing he wanted was to upset his
mate but damn it had been a crazy night.

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Abel seemed hell bent on going after his father and Elias couldn’t

let him go alone, so there was really only one option. “Abel, baby,
stop crying.”

“I can’t.” He sobbed. “I’m scared.”
“Don’t be, because I’m going to come with you and we’ll find

your dad.” Or so Elias hoped. For all he knew it’d be a wild goose
chase. Abel was still learning how to control his powers and this new
trick of being able to see into his father’s dreams was completely
brand new.

“You’ll come with me? But why? Won’t that get you into trouble

with Ben?”

“Probably.” Elias shrugged. “But he’d understand.” Elias reached

up and kissed Abel on the lips. “Like me, he’d do anything for his
mate.”

“Thank you, Elias.”
“Don’t mention it, Abe.” Elias took a step back from Abel and

pointed a finger at him. “I’m going to run in there and finished getting
dressed.” He looked down at his naked chest. “And pack a few things.
You will wait for me out here, okay?”

“Okay.” Abel walked around to sit in the passenger seat while

Elias ran back into the house.

Elias couldn’t say for sure if he was doing the right thing but it

was his only option at the present. Abel needed him and therefore
nothing else mattered. He just hoped Ben would understand.

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Chapter Fourteen

Abel couldn’t believe Elias had decided to come with him. Elias

ran back into the house and came back ten minutes later with a
backpack and fully dressed. He drove them to the airport then they
took the early flight out to Vegas. Three hours later they were in Las
Vegas and were checking into the Dark Lotus hotel and casino.

The plane wasn’t full so they were able to talk about everything

that had taken place in the past week. They both agreed it was the
mating connection that started the ball rolling on Abel having all these
dreams, but it was when they completed the mating bond that he
gained more control of what he saw.

“So you really believe your father is here?” Elias asked once they

were alone in the elevator leading up to their hotel room.

“I do,” Abel answered honestly. He couldn’t explain it and he

didn’t feel like he had to. Elias was his mate and should support and
trust him no matter what. Maybe Elias would be more willing to trust
Abel if he hadn’t tried to sneak out of the house and freeze him like
he had done to their friends.

“Okay then.” The door slid opened and Elias led the way to their

room on the seventh floor. Elias opened the door and set his bag down
on the table on the other side of the room. “So how does this work?”

“Work?” Abel tossed his bag into the corner than sat down on the

edge of the bed.

“You know, the whole dream thing.” Elias sat down beside him.

“We came all this way, let’s find him, shall we?” Elias took Abel’s
hand in his, using a finger to trace the lines of his palm. “I’ll just feel
better once this is all over and you are safely back at the compound.”

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“Elias, I can take care of myself.” Abel rested his head on Elias’s

shoulder. After the adrenaline rush he had that previous night started
to wane he felt exhausted, barely able to keep his eyes open. “I’m not
completely helpless.”

“I know you’re not, but I just worry. Dark warriors are mindless

robots. They go after what they want no matter the cost. I don’t like
the fact that they want you.”

“I don’t like it any more than you do, trust me.” Abel chuckled.

He climbed up the bed and lay down on the pillows. “But to answer
your question on how this all happens, I’m not one hundred percent
for sure, but I typically just fall asleep. Yesterday afternoon when I
laid down I concentrated on my dad and as soon as I fell asleep it took
me to him.”

“Okay then let’s get you comfortable so you will fall asleep.”

Elias sat up and pulled off Abel’s shoes, then worked the blankets
down then pulled them up to tuck under Abel’s chin. “How’s that?”

“Better if you were lying beside me.” Abel pulled back the

blanket and patted the space beside him.

“I can do that.” Elias climbed under the covers and turned to face

Abel, letting his arm drape over Abel's stomach. “This okay?”

“It’s perfect.” Abel snuggled closer and let his eyes fall shut.
“Get some sleep, Abe.” Elias combed Abel’s hair back from his

forehead then kissed him. “I love you.”

“I love you, Elias.”
Abel rubbed his forehead into Elias’s chest and let the warmth

from his mate’s body seep into his skin. The steady thump-thump of
Elias’s heart lulled him to sleep.

Asher stood in a stark white bathroom. He combed his wet hair

out of his face then poured some gel into his hand then moved his
fingers through his short dark hair, styling it just right.

When he was finished, Asher headed toward his closet and pulled

out a pair of black skinny jeans and white T-shirt with some writing

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on it. He got dressed, grabbed his wallet and keys, and then headed
for the front door.

Asher walked down two flights of stairs, then pushed open a heavy

door and walked out onto the sidewalk. The sun had started to set and
people rushed by as Asher took his time. The smell of exhaust and
sweat wafted around Asher but he ignored it. He walked about six
blocks down the road, passing the same sign as before. The date and
time flashed on the screen. Asher hopped up onto the sidewalk and
headed for the dark building with the flashing purple light that said
Club Steel.

“Hey, Ash!” A man called out to him and Asher waved in his

direction. A few more young men called out a greeting and Asher said
hello back.

Once in the employee locker room Asher talked to a few more men

dressed in skimpy shorts. Asher started to remove his clothes and
opened his locker to pull out a pair of royal-blue boy shorts. They fit
him tight and Asher had to rearrange his junk to sit comfortably in the
confining material.

“You ready for tonight, Ash?” A tall man with short blond hair

asked.

“Always.” Asher smiled up at the man then shut his locker door.
“He’s at the club.” Abel gasped as he sat up in the bed. “We need

to leave.” Abel tugged at the sheets trying to free his legs.

“Abel, hold up.” Elias grabbed him by the shoulders and kept him

from toppling over. “Tell me what you saw?”

“Asher’s at that bar, getting ready for his shift.” Abel’s cheeks

heated at the memory of seeing his dad, granted the man looked more
like Abel’s brother, in a pair of shorts that barely covered his ass.

“Okay.” Elias helped Abel out of the tangled mess of blankets.

“We are only a few blocks from Club Steel, so there’s no rush. Why
don’t you take a deep breath. Do you want something to eat?”

“I’m not hungry.” Abel grabbed for his shoes and started to put

them on.

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“All righty then.” Elias rolled his eyes. “Let’s head out to watch

your father shake his ass.”

“Uh, that sounded so gross.” Abel swallowed down the urge to

vomit. “Please don’t say that again.”

“Hey, he’s your dad.” Elias chuckled. “Come, Abe.” He held a

hand out to Abel and pulled him to his feet. “Let’s go see what dear
old dad is up to, shall we?”

“Yes, we shall. Hang on a minute.” Abel ducked in the bathroom

to brush his teeth and wash his face. He finger combed his hair,
pulling the shoulder-length locks back into a ponytail.

Elias held his hand as they took the elevator down to the main

level then on the entire walk to the club. It was a Thursday night but it
didn’t seem to matter. The town was alive with activity. People
walking slowly down the sidewalk, taking in the sights of Las Vegas.
Crowds stopped to huddle around street performers or to watch the
fountain show at one of the larger hotels.

“Here we are.” Elias stopped in front of the brick building. “Club

Steel.” Elias nudged Abel in the shoulder. “Kind of a stupid name,
huh?”

“I guess.” Abel shrugged. He looked from the front door to the

line that ran along the side of the building. “Damn it.”

“What?”
“Look at the line.” Abel pointed at the cluster of people forming

the line. “It could take hours.”

“Maybe, but maybe not.” Elias grabbed Abel’s hand. “Come with

me.”

Abel let Elias drag him down the alleyway between Club Steel

and another building. Large dumpsters lined one side and just past
that were steps leading up to a door. Elias walked right on up the
steps, pulling Abel behind him.

“What are you doing?” Abel asked when Elias reached for the

handle on the large metal door and yanked. The lock snapped under
the pressure and Elias opened the door.

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“After you, my love.” Elias held the door for Abel as he walked

inside. They looked to be at the back of a storage room. Elias shut the
door behind him and came up beside Abel. “If anyone comes out just
freeze them, okay?”

“I could have just froze the people at the front door.” Abel

grumbled as they made their way through the back hallways.

“True but we don’t need to tip off any dark warriors that might be

here on vacation.”

“Dark warriors take vacations?” Abel asked, then giggled at the

thought. Not that he had seen a lot of dark warriors but the thought
just seemed ludicrous.

“Not really sure, but better safe than sorry. Here, follow me.”

Elias opened a door then peeked around the corner. “Coast is clear.”

They stepped into a well lit room that Abel recognized. It was the

employee locker room. Without thinking twice about it he walked up
to Asher’s locker. He opened the door and looked inside. Black jeans,
white T-shirt, and heavy black books. Abel picked up the T-shirt and
lifted it to his nose and took a deep breath, sunshine and salt water.
Abel smiled. He always thought his dad smelt like the beach. It had
the ability to put a smile on Abel’s face every time.

“Dude, did you just smell his shirt?” Elias cocked an eyebrow at

him.

“Yeah, it’s him, Asher.” Abel put the shirt back in the locker, then

headed for the door. From here he knew his way around the club.

“Hey, are you supposed to be back here?” The tall blond from his

dream stopped them at the door.

“Uh…” Abel glanced over his shoulder at Elias who raised a hand

up and flicked his fingers. “Oh yeah, right.” Abel turned back around
and said, “Sorry.” Then froze the man.

Elias picked up the living statue and set him inside an empty

bathroom stall. Once that was done, Abel led the way out to the main
room. The loud music thundered in his ears and the lights grew

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dimmer. He stiffened at the soft touch of Elias’s hand around his then
turned his palm up to interlace their fingers.

Abel had never been to a place like this before and he just

couldn’t see the appeal. It was loud, crowded, and had the faint smell
of body odor, all kinds, good and bad.

“Do you see him?” Elias leaned close to ask in his ear.
“No.” Abel checked out all the platforms searching for his father.
“Let’s walk over to the bar to get a drink.” Elias pulled Abel

through the dancing bodies to the bar.

Abel couldn’t believe how much the place looked like his dreams.

Even the music playing over the speakers was the same.

“Here.” Elias handed him a coke. “Let’s go stand over there.”

Elias pointed to a small area off to the side of the dance floor. There
were a few empty tables left unoccupied. Abel lifted up on his toes
and turned his head from side to side, searching for his father. “Relax,
Abel, you need to blend in more with the crowd.”

“I’m trying.” Abel made an annoyed sound in the back of his

throat. “There’s just too many people here. Why can’t I just freeze the
crowd and look for him that way?”

“Because you don’t know if your power even works on your dad

and second, we don’t need you popping up on more dark warrior’s
radar.”

“Fine,” Abel grumbled, but Elias was right.
“Well hello there.” About thirty minutes into their wait a man

sidled up next to Elias. “You want to dance?”

“Are you kidding me?” Abel raised his hand and waved his hand

in the man’s direction, freezing him in place.

“Babe.” Elias started to laugh. “I didn’t realize you were the

jealous type.”

“Well now you know.” Abel narrowed his eyes at the other man.

He stood as tall as Abel, at least six feet, but that’s where the
similarities ended. This guy had light brown hair, cut close to the
scalp, and thick muscular arms. He was built like a brick shit house,

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all hard muscles and smoldering good looks. Abel really didn’t like
him.

“Abe, you have to unfreeze him. We don’t need to draw any

attention to ourselves.”

“Fine but let’s walk over here first.” Abel grabbed Elias’s hand

and walked him a good twenty feet away from the other man before
he freed the guy from his statue-like state.

“I think I like the jealous Abel.” Elias wound his arms around

Abel’s waist from behind and rested his chin on Abel’s shoulder.
“Turns me on.”

“I’ll have to remember that.” Abel leaned into Elias’s chest.
“You want to dance?” Elias asked.
“I don’t know how,” Abel mumbled, embarrassed to admit that. In

his sixty-three years he never had the desire to learn to dance. He
wasn’t a social kind of guy and hanging out in large crowds like this
terrified him.

“I’ll show you. It’s easy.” Elias let his arms fall away from Abel’s

body and walked around to face him. He curled his pointer finger on
his right hand and beckoned Abel to follow him and he did.

Abel sped up and looped his finger through the belt loop on

Elias’s pants. He didn’t want to get separated from his mate. The
dance floor was packed with people. A lot of them were just jumping
around bumping into one another and then there were those that
danced close and touched one another in a very erotic way. Abel
started to sweat and swiped a hand over his forehead.

“Just follow my lead.” Elias came to a stop and pulled Abel close.

He rocked his hips from side to side, swaying to the music.

Abel picked up the rhythm quickly and smiled as he let his body

bump up close to Elias. One song faded into another and suddenly
Abel couldn’t remember why he had never done this before. But it
didn’t take him long to come to the conclusion that it was Elias who
made this fun. Dancing with a random stranger wouldn’t have the
same effect on him.

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“Hey, man, you look a lot like Ash.” Abel looked down at the

man who had danced up next to them. He was short with dark hair
and even darker eyes. Was that makeup? “You could totally be his
doppelganger.”

“Is that so?” Elias spoke when it was apparent Abel wasn’t going

to.

“Totally.” The man pointed up at Abel. “Same dark auburn hair,

but Ash wears his short. The long, lanky body and those bright green
eyes. I always tell Ash I’m going to pluck them from his head one of
these days. They look like freaking emeralds.” The guy took a step
closer to Abel. “Damn, even that stress line between your eyes is the
same. You really should relax that before you wrinkle.”

“Where is this Ash? If he looks as much like my boyfriend as you

say then I think it’d be hot to have them dance for me.”

Abel raised a hand to finger the line on his forehead. It’d been

years since he’d seen his father. Abel had been just a boy then and his
memories of his father seemed to get hazier and hazier with each
passing day. With the dreams he’d been having, he got to see his
father but it wasn’t the same as seeing him face to face, so to hear he
looked like the man took his breath away.

“He’s on break right now but he should be out soon. You should

at least get a picture with him. Too much gorgeousness.” The man
smiled again then danced away.

“At least now we know he’s here.”
“He said we look alike.” Abel smiled to himself.
“Didn’t you already know that?” Elias asked.
“But it’s different to hear someone say it.” Abel let his eyes dart

around the room for his father. He couldn’t wait to see him.

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Chapter Fifteen

This waiting around for Asher was starting to get annoying. He

still thought it was a terrible idea and wanted to get Abel out of this
place before something bad happened.

Elias glanced down at his watch. “Damn it,” he whispered softly.
Abel didn’t hear him, too distracted by what that man had said

about him and Asher looking alike. Happiness filled Abel’s eyes and
he looked like he wanted to cry. It thrilled Elias to see his mate that
happy. He just hoped Asher didn’t disappoint him.

Elias pulled out his phone and checked for missed calls but

nothing. Earlier that day, once Abel had fallen asleep, Elias shot a text
message to Aaron, his partner the past few weeks, and someone he
could trust. Elias didn’t have a good feeling about any of this and
really didn’t like the fact that no one knew where they were so he sent
Aaron a message with their location and that it involved Asher. That
had been a few hours ago and still no word from Aaron.

The air conditioning kicked on and stirred up all types of scents,

some human and some paranormal. There were the typical orders one
would find at a club such as sweat, sex, and alcohol. But under all that
Elias was able to pick up the animal fur of a shifter, wolf, he thought,
the sweet tang of blood, which had to be a vampire, and another
shifter of some sort. In a crowded touristy place like Vegas that
wasn’t abnormal, but still Elias didn’t like it one bit.

“Abel, I think—” Elias’s breath caught in his throat. “Holy shit.”
“What?” Abel followed Elias’s line of sight.

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Asher stood talking to the petite dark-haired man who said Abel

and he looked alike. The resemblance was uncanny. If it hadn’t been
for the different hair styles they’d look like twins.

“He does look like you.” Elias’s eyes dropped to roam over

Asher’s body. He only had on a pair of barely there boy shorts and if
he wasn’t mistaken they were in fact see through. “That’s just
completely weird.”

The dark-haired man leaned up on his tip toes to whisper in

Asher’s ear and the smile that had been on his face fell and his eyes
cut to them.

“Oh my god, he’s spotted us.” Elias reached out and grabbed

Abel’s hand.

“He looks mad.” Abel moved in close to Elias. “Why does he look

mad?”

They wouldn’t have to wait long to find out. Asher headed right in

their direction. The look on his face wasn’t one of “hello there son,
boy have I missed you.” No, Asher looked pissed the hell off.

“Abel, what are you doing here?” Asher whispered in a harsh

voice. His eyes looked from Abel down to Elias and their clasped
hands. “And who the hell are you?” Asher raised his head, his nose
scenting the air. “Shifter.”

“Yep, cougar to be exact,” Elias said to break the ice.
“Hey, there Asher. Long time know see.” A nervous smile lit up

Abel’s sweet face.

“Son, not that I’m not happy to see you, but why are you here?”
“Because I’m worried about you and think you should come back

with us,” Abel said in a rush. “I think if you talked to Ben maybe it’d
help clear your name. They think you know where Benedict is.”

“Fuck me walking.” Asher groaned. “I don’t have a lot of time but

we really need to talk. Follow me.”

Elias put his hand on the small of Abel’s back and pushed his

mate to go ahead of him. Asher took them back to the employee
locker room. When they came through the door, Elias checked the

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bathroom stalls but didn’t see the tall blond. Elias shrugged. The man
probably unfroze and went back to doing whatever it was he was
doing.

“Oh my god, Abel.” Asher pulled Abel into a tight hug. “How did

you find me?” Asher let go of Abel and sat down on one of the
wooden benches between the rows of lockers.

“From my dreams.” Abel sat down, straddling the bench facing

his father.

Elias couldn’t get over how much a like they looked. But there

was a hardness to Asher’s demeanor that Abel didn’t have. It must
have been the years of running and hiding that had put the shadows in
Asher’s eyes.

“Your dreams?” Asher asked.
“Yes, of you and Benny.” Asher’s face went pale at that name.

“How do you know that name?” Asher asked, his eyes misting over.

“Like I said, from my dreams.” Abel laughed softly. “I saw a lot

of things. Some things I wish I could unsee. But most of all I saw how
in love you two were.” Abel reached for his father’s hand. “And
maybe still are.”

“Is that the power you inherited from your mother?”
“No, my power is to freeze things. Becoming a voyeur in your

dreams only started after I met my mate.” Abel looked over at Elias,
where he stood leaning against the metal lockers.

“Mate?” Asher had a look of disbelief on his face.
“That would be me.” Elias stepped over to offer his hand to

Asher. “Name’s Elias. No need to introduce yourself. I’ve heard
plenty about you.” The man stared down at Elias’s hand in disdain.

“All lies, I’m sure.” Asher sneered.
“Maybe, but only a guilty man runs and hides like a coward.”

Elias couldn’t help it. His mouth opened and the words poured out.
For so long he’d been taught that this man, Asher Guillory, was the
enemy they needed to bring down. It was a hard habit to break, hating
him.

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“You don’t know me or what I’ve been through, cat.” Asher stood

up to tower over Elias.

“Did you just call me a cat?” Elias bumped chest with Asher. It

was times like this that he hated being short.

“Both of you stop it, please.” Abel pushed between them,

separating them.

“He started it.” Asher pointed a finger into Elias’s face.
“Truth hurts, doesn’t it?”
“Please, stop it.” Abel turned to look at Elias, pleading in his eyes

for Elias to shut his mouth. Elias nodded his head and took a step
back. “Thank you.” Abel looked back at his father. “Asher, Elias is
my mate and you need to find a way to accept that, because he isn’t
going anywhere.”

“For you, I’ll try.” Asher reached out and cupped his hand on

Abel’s cheek. “My gods, it’s been ages since I’ve seen you up close
like this. Look at you. You’ve grown into a fine young man.” Asher
pulled Abel into another hug. “I’ve been following your career.
You’re so very talented. You must get that from your mother.”

“I don’t know about that.” Abel sat back down on the bench. “I

hate to ask this, but I have to know. If you’ve been following my
career then you must have known I had to leave San Francisco a few
weeks ago?”

“I did.” Asher nodded his head.
“Why didn’t you contact me? I’m your son and those monsters

came after me.” Abel’s voice started to crack. Elias scooted in behind
Abel and wrapped his arms around him. “They wanted to take me
with them.”

“My sweet boy, I would never have let that happen.” Asher put a

finger under Abel’s chin and tilted his head up. “I was there. I’d been
watching you for the past fifty years. I stayed far enough away not to
interfere with your life but close enough in case you needed me.” He
looked over Abel’s head to Elias. “I had a good laugh when those four

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warriors came to watch over my son.” Asher chuckled. “Carlos and
that Josh character fought so much. It was very entertaining.”

“You were there?”
“Yes, Abel, I was there the whole time. I couldn’t take the chance

that the Warriors of the Dark would find you. For so many years you
were protected but something happened when the council came down.
I don’t know if it was the shift in the power of good and evil but the
cloaking spell on you started to grow weak. I knew it was only a
matter of time before they found you.”

“If that’s true, how come you didn’t go to him sooner?” Elias

asked.

“Simple, I knew the Warriors of the Light would find Abel and

take care of him and I needed them to so I could do what needs to be
done.”

“And what’s that?” Abel asked.
“Finding Benedict.” Asher let his hand fall away from Abel’s face

and he clasped his hands together in his lap. “See, he’s part of the
prophecy. He’s important in ending this war of good and evil. The
dark is rising up faster than anyone had expected. Taking out the
council took guts.”

“Prophecy?” Abel turned to look at Elias.
“I’ve heard about it but no one knows for sure what it means or

who it’s referring to.” Elias answered the best he could. He had
limited knowledge on this subject.

“See, that’s where I can be of assistance.” Asher grinned at Elias.
It was still hard for Elias to wrap his brain around Asher being a

good person, but in that moment Elias realized he didn’t have any
other choice but to trust this man.

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Chapter Sixteen

“Asher, what’s the prophecy?” Abel looked at his father, then to

Elias. The two seemed to be having a stare off. “Hello, can anyone
answer me?”

“It’s said that there is a way to stop evil from rising and taking

over,” Asher explained. “The legend goes back further than I’ve been
alive, but it seemed to be ridiculous because there’s always been a
balance of good and evil but something shifted, changing all that.
Some say it’s just the changes in time but others believe it started with
the birth of your friend Astrid.”

“How do you know about him?” Elias’s arms clenched tight

around Abel’s stomach.

“Everyone knows of him. His birth is nothing short of a miracle

and is why I think it was so easy for your mother”—Asher stared into
Abel’s eyes—“to conceive you. Even with a strong spell it shouldn’t
have happened. If the balance of good and evil were in perfect
harmony it wouldn’t have happened. Call me selfish but I’m glad it
did.” Asher reached for Abel’s hand, squeezing it tight. “Because I
got you.”

Abel swallowed around the lump forming in his throat. His father

was still the sweet and gentle man he remembered him to be. He
didn’t care what anyone else said, his father was a good man. “What
does the prophecy say?”

“The coming together of two souls will bring the birth of a new

beginning.” Asher stared at the ground. “It’s taken me years, but I
think I’ve figured it out.”

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“You have to be shitting me.” Elias shook his head. “You’re

trying to tell me you know what it means and you’re not the one
behind all the bad shit going on?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you,” Asher said in a cool voice,

not breaking his stare with Elias. “Believe what you will, but I have
no reason to lie or help for that matter. I’ve been running for over a
thousand years because of one poor choice I made. But unlike the
scary stories the council told you warriors, I wasn’t a willing
participant. I too was tricked by a witch.”

Abel covered his hands over Elias’s when his mate geared up to

say something else. It seemed to calm Elias.

“What do you think it means, Asher?” Abel asked.
“From all the different theories I’ve heard, paranormals assumed

it would be the birth of Ben and Miles’s son Colby.”

“Fuck, you know about him, too?” Elias asked.
“There’s not much that goes on that I don’t know about.”
“You didn’t know about us,” Elias said with a smile on his face.
“Yes, that one did seem to get by me.” Asher coughed to clear his

throat. “But back to the prophecy. What I’m about to tell you is very
important, and if I’m right then you need to go back to San Antonio
and tell Ben. More than one life is at risk.”

“How so?” Abel leaned forward more curious than ever.
“Everyone always assumed the prophecy meant two souls as in

two people, but we paranormals aren’t a whole soul until we’ve
become mated. We have a soul and live perfectly normal lives but
we’re not complete until we find our other half.”

“So what you’re saying is the prophecy is referring to four

different people that are mated?” Elias asked.

“Yes.” Asher shrugged. “If you think about it, it makes perfect

since. Most paranormals die after losing a mate. Their soul is
weakened and they don’t want to go on. If they don’t die within that
first year they become something dark and turn to evil. A person can’t
go on with only half a soul, now can they?”

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“If what you are saying is true, who are the four people?” Abel

asked. He hadn’t been with the Warriors of the Light for very long but
he’d met plenty of mated couples, he was one of them. It was strange
to think that he and Elias were connected like that but it explained the
pull he had to Elias the first time he’d seen him. His heart and soul
recognized its one perfect match.

“It’s to be said that one complete soul is old and the other is

young. I think that Ben’s son, Colby, might be half of one of the
young souls. I’m not sure who the other could be but it would make
since why they attempted to kidnap Colby before he was even born.”

“Who’s the old souls?” Abel asked.
Asher turned away from him and didn’t say anything.
“Asher, is it Benedict?” Abel reached out and touched his father’s

arm.

“Yes,” Asher whispered and tears filled his eyes.
“But he doesn’t have a mate.” Elias leaned to the side to look at

Asher. “Ben’s parents weren’t true mates, so why would you think its
Benedict?”

Abel watched something flash over Asher’s eyes, love, hope, and

pure fear. In that instant he knew. “He’s your mate, isn’t he?” Abel
asked, holding tight to his father’s hand.

“Yes,” Asher said so softly Abel barely heard him. “We never

completed the mating ritual once we became vampires, but it is true.
We’ve been fighting it for over a thousand years, and now it’s the
only thing keeping them from killing him.”

“Who’s them?” Elias pressed.
“Lucian, he’s working with one of the First.”
When Abel had come to live at the compound he’d been given a

lot of information and right now he wished he’d written it all down
but the name Lucian stuck out. From what Miles had told him, Lucian
was a very powerful vampire who took over after his master,
Malcolm, was killed. And since then Lucian had done some very

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horrible things. He was the monster the human world warned their
children about.

The one thing he’d never heard before was the term First.
“First?” Abel asked.
“One of the first known witches to ever exist. Rumor is she has

aspirations to rule the world.”

“Who are you hearing all these rumors from?” Elias stood up and

started to pace the floor. “We’ve been busting our asses searching all
over the world for answers and no one is talking to us. So why should
we believe they’re talking to you?”

“Because I’m just a lowly vampire who witches aren’t afraid to

talk to.” Asher grinned up at Elias. “For so long the righteous
Warriors of the Light acted in haste and instilled fear into others. It’s
a hard habit to break, fear.”

“Elias, please sit down.” Abel yanked him down by his arm to sit

on the bench.

“Asher, you said it’s the only thing keeping him alive. How is

that? If they kill him won’t that stop the prophecy?” Not that Abel
wanted anything to happen to Benedict but it did seem like a simple
solution to the dark warrior’s problems.

“If they did that another couple would be chosen to fulfill the

prophecy and that is the last thing Lucian and the First want.”

“So what then?” Abel had a feeling he wouldn’t like what his

father would have to say next. “Are they just going to hold him
indefinitely? And what’s your solution to that? If they are willing to
keep him hidden away, what’s stopping them from doing the same to
you?”

“Nothing, son.” Asher couldn’t meet Abel’s eyes. “It’s probably

exactly what they are planning for me.”

“That settles it.” Abel stood up. “You need to come back with us

tonight to the compound. You aren’t safe here.” Abel opened Asher’s
locker and grabbed his clothes. His eyes burned with tears and he

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137

started to get angry. He’d just found his father and wasn’t going to
lose him again.

“Son, stop it.” Asher grabbed Abel by the hands and stopped them

from shaking. “I can’t go with you.”

“Why not?” Abel screamed.
“Because Benny needs me.”
Abel collapsed against his father’s chest and wept like a baby.

Had Abel been in his father’s shoes he’d do the same for Elias.
Nothing could keep him away from his mate, so he had to respect
what his father was willing to do.

“I don’t want to lose you, dad.” Abel looked into his father’s red

rimmed eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, my dear boy. I love you, too.” Asher pulled him

in tight and kissed the top of his head. Tears from his father’s eyes
dripped down to dampen Abel’s shirt. “I know it’s hard to understand
but I have to see this through. You’d do the same for Elias.” Asher
glanced over at Abel’s mate. “We do crazy things for love.”

“What’s your plan, Asher?” Elias came up to stand behind Abel,

helping to hold him up. “Can we help in any way?”

“Unfortunately, no. It’s too risky and I can’t blow my cover.

There’s a wolf shifter that lives here, an alpha. I got his name from a
reliable source. It’s rumored that he’s holding Benedict.”

“But won’t this guy know who you are?” Abel swiped his hands

over his eyes. “What you look like?”

“There are very few pictures of me in existence. I’ve altered my

appearance a lot over the years, and most of Lucian’s people weren’t
even born when I became a vampire. I seriously doubt Lucian himself
would recognize me if I walked into a room.”

“That’s a lot to play to chance, don’t you think?” Abel didn’t like

to gamble and didn’t like to think his father was out there putting his
neck on the line.

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“But it’s all I have. Abel—” The sound of an incoming text on

Asher’s phone silenced whatever he was going to say next. His face
turned grim as he read the message. “I have to go.”

“What?” Abel grabbed onto his father’s shoulders when he moved

to turn away to get dressed. “You can’t go.”

“I befriended the man who’s possibly holding Benedict and he’s

on his way to pick me up.” Asher detangled Abel from his body. “I
need to go.”

“Asher, what can we do to help?” Elias asked as he helped lower

Abel to the bench to sit down.

“The best thing you can do for me right now is get my son back to

that compound. Lucian will use anything he can to get me to come out
of hiding.”

“I can do that. You have my world that I’ll protect Abel with my

life.” Elias held out his hand and this time, to Abel’s surprise, his
father took it.

“That’s what I always liked about you warriors. You protect

others no matter the expense to yourself.” Asher’s smiled.

“Seems to me that’s a character trait you yourself possesses.”

Elias let go of Asher’s hand and sat down beside Abel.

Abel watched as his father got dressed and then Abel and Elias

walked him to the back door. They waited with Asher until his ride
showed up.

“Abel, one day I hope you can forgive me for leaving you once

again, but I have to go.” Asher pulled Abel in for one last hug.

“I know, Dad,” Abel said into Asher’s shoulder. “That’s what

makes you a good man.”

“No, you are what makes me a good man. If it weren’t for you I’d

given up a long time ago. I love you, son. Don’t you ever forget that.
You are my world.”

“I love you, too.” A fresh wave of tears started again and Abel

squeezed his arms tight around his father’s chest.

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139

The sound of a horn honking had Asher pulling away. “Son, this

isn’t the end, just the beginning.”

Abel watched the door close behind his dad as he left the building.

They had no name or anything to go on if this man killed his father,
but Abel understood why Asher had to go. He couldn’t leave anything
to chance when it came to Benedict. Abel would have done the same
thing for Elias.

“What do you say?” Elias curled his hand around Abel’s. “You

ready to go home?”

“Please.” Abel nodded his head and let Elias lead him out of the

noisy club and back to their hotel. They checked out and went straight
to the airport and got a flight home.

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Chapter Seventeen

Elias was able to get them seats on a flight back to San Antonio.

Abel didn’t say much while on the airplane or after they landed. His
mate was heartbroken and there was nothing Elias could do to make it
better. Abel had to watch his father walk away from him for the
second time in his life. It was times like this that Elias felt glad he
didn’t have any family to worry about. But all that had changed. He
had Abel now.

If there had been one thing Elias learned from this little trip was

that they were all wrong about Asher. It wasn’t just a possibility, it
was fact. No man consumed with evil would risk his freedom to help
another. And Elias saw the love shining in Asher’s eyes when he
spoke of Benedict.

It was just after one in the morning when they arrived in Texas.

They drove Trevor’s car back to the house. It was the middle of the
night and, not wanting to disturb anyone, Elias left Trevor’s car
parked outside and used his key for the front door to let them in.

Nothing looked out of place, just the way it had been when they

left. Elias peeked into the TV room where he’d last seen Toby and he
was in the same exact spot Elias had left him.

“Hey sweetie.”
“Yeah?” Abel walked up behind Elias.
“I think the house is still frozen.” Elias tapped his knuckles on

Toby’s head and the man didn’t even flinch.

“How’s that possible?” Abel dropped his bag and sat down beside

Toby.

“Maybe your powers are getting stronger.” Elias shrugged.

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141

“Shit,” Abel groaned and covered his face with his hands. “I left

all these people at risk by using my power on them.” He looked up at
Elias, lines creasing his forehead. It was as if Abel had aged ten years
in less the twelve hours. “What if the dark warriors found the house
and took Colby? Oh god!” Abel stood and ran for the stairs.

Elias followed close behind him, taking the steps two at a time.

He didn’t want to admit it out loud but he, too, was a little panicked.
They reached Ben and Miles’s room and cracked open the door.
Lying on the bed were Ben and Miles facing each other and in
between them was baby Colby, all still frozen in sleep.

“See, they’re all okay.” Elias pulled the door shut. “But to be safe

let’s check on everyone.” Abel nodded his agreement and they looked
through the entire house to make sure everyone was accounted for,
and they were.

“You think they’ll be mad at me?” Abel asked as they stepped

into their room.

“Maybe at first but they’ll get over it.” Elias stepped up close to

Abel and pulled him close. “You did what you had to and because of
that we’ve learned more in the past twenty-four hours then in the two
months since the council was blown up and Benedict went missing.”
Elias gave his mate a little shake. “Granted, your means might be less
than desirable, but they proved results. That’s what the job of a
warrior is, tackling a problem and finding the best way to resolve it
with little to no casualties.”

“Warrior?” Abel pulled back to look at Elias. “I’m not a warrior,

just a clueless witch who doesn’t know what he’s doing half the time.
It’s annoying.”

“Yes, you are a warrior. You risked your own well-being to aid

another and you found out information that will help us in the future.
If that ain’t warrior qualities then I don’t know what is.” Elias tugged
Abel close and brushed his lips lightly over his. “And hey, don’t say
anything bad about that clueless witch, because he’s my mate.” Elias
used his right hand to smack Abel on the butt. “And he’s perfect.”

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“I think you might be a little biased.” Abel giggled.
“Maybe, but does it really matter?” Elias slowly walked Abel

backward toward the bed. “Now let’s get some sleep. We have a long
day ahead of us tomorrow.”

Elias helped Abel undress then pulled back the sheets for him to

climb into bed. He then took off his clothes, shut off the light and
joined his mate. Abel snuggled in close and rested his head on Elias’s
chest. For one brief moment everything seemed right in a world
spinning out of control.

“Oh! I almost forgot.” Abel raised his hand and blue streaks of

light flicked from his fingertips and instantly sound and movement
filled the house.

“Night, Abe.”
“Goodnight, Elias. Love you.” Abel kissed Elias right above his

heart then lay back down.

“Love you, too.” Elias closed his eyes and let sleep take him

away. If felt like ages since he’d had a proper night’s sleep.

The next morning, Elias left Abel sleeping in bed. He had a smile

on his face, so Elias assumed the dreams must be good ones, so he
didn’t wake him.

On his way down the stairs, heading toward Ben’s office, he

bumped into Aaron.

“Dude, what does this text mean?” Aaron held his phone out for

him to see. “It’s from a day ago. How’s that possible? And how did
you get to Vegas and back without anyone knowing?”

Elias blew out a breath and put his hands in his pockets and

rocked back and forth on his feet. “Come with me.” He waved for
Aaron to follow him. “I only want to have to explain this once.”

When they reached Ben’s door, Elias knocked and Ben

immediately let them in.

“Elias, just the man I wanted to see.” Ben pushed his laptop aside

and pointed to the empty chairs in front of him. “Please have a seat.”

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143

The door opened and Quinn, Klaus and Carlos came in to join

them. They wore grim expressions on their faces and Elias’s heart rate
spiked. Did they know?

“Elias, I don’t want to accuse anyone of anything, but would you

care to explain to me how in the hell everyone in this house lost an
entire day?” Ben asked.

“That’s what I was coming to talk you about. It’s a long story.”
Elias went on to tell his fellow warriors about Abel’s dreams and

finding Asher. He told them what Asher had said and Ben refused to
listen, said it was complete nonsense, but Carlos reminded him of the
photos Benedict kept. It made it hard to deny what was so obviously
clear. He also told them what Asher had said about the prophecy and
how Benedict and Asher both played a part in it. It pained Elias to tell
his leader and friend that his son Colby did as well.

“And you believe him?” Ben asked.
“Yeah, I do. He has no reason to lie. If he didn’t care about your

father he wouldn’t be risking his life to find him. He wants to end this
war just as badly as we do.” Elias lifted his hands and shook his head.
“I know it sounds crazy, considering all we’ve heard over the years,
but it’s true. I saw the way he looked at Abel and the way his eyes lit
up when he talked about your father. He’s a man on a mission to set
things right to save the people he loves.”

“But if they’re mates, how could they stand to be away from each

other for so long and not lose their minds?” Quinn asked, always the
skeptic.

“From Elias’s story, Asher said they never completed the mating

ritual,” Klaus answered. “Without the completion of the ritual they
are still two separate beings, unattached. They could live normal,
healthy lives forever. They’d feel the longing toward one another, but
it wouldn’t deteriorate them. It’s sad if all this is true, though. To love
someone for so long and never able to be with them.”

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“Yeah, I’d say,” Elias agreed. “Plus for Asher to have been forced

into hiding all these years. Makes me wonder what happened to create
this rumor,” Elias thought out loud.

“Me, too.” Ben let his head fall back to rest against his chair. “I

wish my father was around to ask. I’d give anything for his advice
right now.” Ben chuckled. “Shit, I never thought I’d say that.”

“So what’s the plan?” Quinn clapped his hands together. The man

was only his happiest when a plan was set in motion with orders to be
followed.

“All we can do right now is protect Colby.” Ben sat up. “If Asher

is telling the truth then my son is a target. The most important thing is
keeping him safe.” Ben looked up at Klaus. “I’m assuming the
cloaking spell worked?”

“Like a charm.” Klaus crossed his arms over his chest, a satisfied

grin on his faced. “Did you ever doubt me?”

“No, but I just like verbal confirmation and, after yesterday it’s

safe to assume we are well hidden from prying eyes.” Ben shot a
pointed look at Elias.

“Hey, don’t look at me.” Elias held his hands up in the air. “I can’t

control my mate.”

“True, but can you at least ask him not to freeze the entire house

again?” Ben asked. “He put not only us at risk but himself. A war is
coming and we need as many allies as possible.”

“He’s already agreed that he won’t do that again. He feels awful

about it.” Elias defended his mate.

“Tell him not to worry about it. We got lucky and no one got hurt

and he did find out more information than any of us has, so he did a
good job.” Ben shut his eyes and groaned. “I can’t believe I’m putting
my faith into a man I was taught to despise.”

“I understand Ben but if he’s correct in all this, he’s not only

saved Colby’s life but is doing so for Benedict right this very
moment. I’d say your dad is lucky to have a mate like that.” A visible
chill jerked through Elias’s body. “I can’t believe I just said that,

Elias's Clueless Witch

145

someone lucky to have Asher Guillory as a mate. Boy, how times
have changed.”

“Yes, they have.” Ben stood up. “Now if you all will excuse me. I

need to break all this to my mate. He won’t like it one bit, so expect to
up security around the property.” Ben stopped in front of Elias and
Elias stood, taking the hand Ben offered. “Thanks, E. You and your
mate have been a huge help.”

“Don’t mention it.” Elias’s cheeks flushed.
“Always so modest.” Ben put his hand on Elias’s shoulder and

squeezed. “Cason would be so proud of you.”

Elias’s eyes stung with tears at the mention of the friend he’d lost.

Cason was like an older brother to him and since meeting Abel the
pain of his loss lessened a little every day. “Thank you, Ben.”

Ben nodded, then left the room. Elias fell back onto his chair and

swiped a hand through his short hair. So much had happened in the
past week. Elias thought it was time for a vacation.

“Cason would be proud.” Quinn’s loud voice had Elias looking

up. “But then he’d kick your ass for running off without back up.”
Quinn laughed and Elias couldn’t fight it and laughed to.

“You are probably right about that.” Elias smiled at the memory

of Cason, funny, strong, and always reliable. One of the greatest men
Elias had ever known.

“Damn right I am.” Quinn kicked Elias’s chair on the way to the

door. “Now go wake that mate of yours up. We have some training to
do.”

“Shit, Quinn. Always the slave driver.” Elias got up and followed

Quinn out of the office.

“I am, and I’ve got something extra special planned for today.”

Quinn rubbed his hands together, eyes wide and a wicked grin playing
on his lips. He looked like a mad scientist.

“Is this pay back for freezing you for an entire day?” Elias asked.
“You know it.” Quinn punched him lightly in the arm and said,

“Now get going. The day’s wasting away.”

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AJ Jarrett

“Yes, sir.” Elias saluted Quinn, then turned around to head up the

stairs.

When he got to his room, he found Abel up and dressed, sitting in

a chair by the window staring out onto the property. The sun was out
and birds sang in the distance. A beautiful day.

“You’re awake.” Elias sat down on the arm of Abel’s chair.

“Whatcha doing?”

“Thinking.”
“About?” Elias let his fingers toy in Abel’s deep auburn hair.
“About everything. Of what I could have done differently.”
“Ah, babe.” Elias pushed Abel’s legs down and straddled his hips.

He cupped his palms over Abel’s cheeks and pressed a kiss to his
pouting lips. “There’s nothing you could have changed. Asher is a
man on a mission that will be stopped at nothing.” Elias wiped his
thumb under Abel’s eyes, wiping away a stray tear. “If that were us,
nothing would stop me from getting to you.”

Abel stared deeply into Elias’s eyes for a long moment then

smiled and nodded. “Me, too, Elias, me, too.”

“I love you, Abel, don’t you ever forget that.” Elias leaned in,

closing the distance between them, taking the very breath from Abel’s
lungs in a long, slow kiss.

“I love you, too,” Abel said as he pulled away. Abel’s hands

moved down to land on Elias’s ass, pressing him down on his hard
cock.

“Babe, as much as I’d like to stay in here all day and make love to

you, we have to go.” With great regret, Elias stood up.

“What? Why?” Abel pouted.
“Well, first off we have a war to prepare for, and second Quinn

has an extra-special training session planned for you.” Elias winked at
him. “Said it’s your punishment for freezing him.”

“Shit, how mad is he?” Abel fidgeted with the hem of his shirt.

“Does he hate me now? Do all of them hate me?”

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147

“Abe, stop it.” Elias took Abel’s hands into his. “No one hates

you. If anything they are grateful to you for finding out all this
information. So please relax. I’m pretty sure Quinn takes great pride
in how far your abilities have come.” Elias leaned in close to Abel’s
ear and whispered, “And if he’s being too much of an ass, I won’t say
a thing if you freeze him. Deal?”

“Deal.” Abel laughed as he followed Elias out the door. “Things

are going to change, aren’t they?”

“Only for the better, Abe, only for the better.” Elias took Abel’s

hand and they jogged down the stairs to go and meet Quinn.

The war against good and evil was growing and it seemed they all

had a part to play in it. Elias sent up a silent prayer that Asher would
find Benedict and soon. Elias didn’t want to think about what would
happen if the dark warriors captured the two of them. Good had to
prevail because Elias had an eternity to look forward to with Abel and
nothing was going to take that away from him, nothing.

THE END

WWW.AJJARRETT29.BLOGSPOT.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

AJ Jarrett currently lives in the Midwest with her husband and

four children. A lover of M/M romances, she has started writing her
own stories for others to enjoy. She loves her characters to be
antagonistic toward one another but ultimately find their happy ever
after. She believes love can be found in the craziest of places, and a
little humor along the way never hurt. To her, there’s nothing sexier
than two men finding their soul mate in each other and falling in love.
When she isn’t chasing around her kids, she can be found sitting on
the couch with her trusted laptop, giving life to the voices in her head.

For all titles by AJ Jarrett, please visit

www.bookstrand.com/aj-jarrett

Siren Publishing, Inc.

www.SirenPublishing.com

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