“Bastard!” He slammed Asher’s head against the wall again.
“Curse,” Asher gasped, struggling to loosen Gideon’s hold. His mocha skin rapidly took on a mottled reddish hue. Somehow he managed to pry a sliver of breathing room and sucked in a pained breath. “Your…curse…broken,” he gasped again.
Eyes narrowed in suspicion, Gideon released him after one last good thunk against the wall. He herded Maggie behind him, and demanded, “You got five seconds to explain yourself. Then I’m gonna rip your head off for putting Maggie in jeopardy like that.”
“Your curse is broken.”
“How?” Maggie asked, edging around Gideon.
He pushed her back, echoing, “How?”
“All this time you’ve been searching for something to break your curse. You should have been searching for someone.” He rubbed at his throat. “A woman worthy of you. A woman who loves you unconditionally. A woman you learned to control the rage for.” He paused, eyeing them meaningfully. “A mate you would willingly die for.”
Maggie froze. Was Asher saying what she thought he was saying? Could it be possible that Gideon actually loved her too?
“All those times I came to you…commissioned you to search for… Why the hell couldn’t you just have told me that?”
“Some things have to happen just the way they happen,” Asher replied with a mysterious smile.
“You had no right to endanger my mate like that.” Though the tone was calmer, somewhat, there was still enough heat to scorch paint from the walls.
“I just made sure you had the proper motivation.”
Gideon growled low in his throat and made to lunge at him again. Maggie quickly grabbed at him. She smoothed her hand up and down his broad back. His muscles were like solid rock beneath her hand. “Gideon, it’s okay. Everything worked out. Calm down.”
“You see?” Asher arched his dark eyebrow, and his deep brown eyes followed the movements of her hands over Gideon as if her actions were only confirming the brilliance of his plan. “Even now, she soothes you.”
Asher reached into his pocket and drew out a small gold pendant on a chain. He offered it to Maggie. “This is for you.”
She glanced at Gideon, who frowned but nodded, before stepping around him to accept Asher’s offering. He laid the circular adornment flat on her hand. She studied the delicate filigree and the dainty stones.
“You must wear it at all times,” Asher cautioned her, his expression deadly serious. “The pendant will protect you and the child you carry. It will prevent any more portals from opening up within at least a hundred meters of you.
Frowning, not sure if she should believe him, she turned a questioning gaze to Gideon. Before she could open her mouth, Gideon snatched the pendant from her hand and had it clasped around her throat.
Well. I guess that answers my question.
Shaking her head, fighting a laugh at Gideon’s superstitious reaction, she turned back to Asher as Gideon’s arms slipped around her waist.
“Thank you.” She smiled at the handsome demon.
He grinned, lifting the edges of his finely trimmed goatee. “A demon and a Halfling. Normally, I’d say that’s a recipe for disaster. But that little one gives me hope. And he deserves a fighting chance. One I never got.” Asher winked at Maggie, and then disappeared, leaving Maggie and Gideon frowning at each other, baffled.
Stolas glanced around the dank room, took in the broken chains on the walls, the splashes of blood and the headless body at his feet.
They were gone. The Halfling, the Slayer, his mate and Temptation. And Mortika? was already dead, depriving him of even that small pleasure. This situation was fast spinning beyond his control.
Damn it. Damn it all. He drew a deep breath. He had to keep his head. The Halfling may have eluded him. This time. But he wasn’t out of the game. Not yet. He still had one more ace up his sleeve.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Gideon used the toe of his boot to keep the log swing gently swaying. He couldn’t ask for a better, more relaxing evening. The soft shushing of the river and the occasional muted warble of birdsong lulled his senses. A whisper of a breeze rustled the leaves overhead. The sun was just setting, casting a warm golden hue over everything.
And Maggie was nestled in the protective circle of his arms, her head snuggled in the crook of his shoulder.
No, it didn’t get any better than this.
“How are you feeling?” he murmured against her hair.
“I’m fine, Gideon. Stop fussing.” She patted his chest.
He opened his mouth to argue that it was his right to fuss, when a shiver of awareness skated down his spine. Angel. His senses screamed the warning, even as he urged Maggie up, preparing himself to fight.
“What? What is it?” Maggie whispered, her gaze scanning the tree line and the grounds. Angelfire formed in the palm of her hand, and she moved into position at his side.
God, he was proud of his woman.