"I want to see the coins."
x x x
Large, golden, all three of them so perfect. In his grasp. The swastika and the lion's head.
Whispering to him. Eternity and good luck. Power and everything he had ever wanted.
Holding them… they were already influencing him. Already did his mind fall for their false promises, to the madness and the poison burrowing deeper and deeper.
Worn smooth in places, thinner than he had thought… so perfectly fitting into his palm.
His power.
x x x
"Listen to me. You must be very careful."
x x x
Their whispers had been terrible. Cutting into his mind, erasing his personality, keeping him under a control he thought he was yielding. But this hadn't been him.
x x x
His blood ran hot with desire.
The world at his beck and call.
He would rule his city, he would protect it. He would have his mate.
His mate.
All his.
Never to be shared.
x x x
He sat against the stone pillar in the underground parking lot, letting a paramedic check him out.
His mate was gone. He was alone.
And he ached. The loneliness tore at him. He still felt his fingers touch his mate, clinging to him, demanding of Nick to find the coins. He would have given Nick the world to get the coins. Everything!
Renard knew he had fallen for the Coins of Zakynthos like so many before him.
He had been warned.
He hadn't listened.
He had paid for it.
x x x
Renard woke to the feeling of safety, warmth and completion. In that order. He looked around the room and found that they were in the bedroom. After the Grimm's surrender to the regnant, things were a blur. A very pleasant blur.
Balance. Everything was… completely at balance. For the first time in a long time did he feel like he was missing nothing at all. He had never felt this calm and collected, so aware of everything despite the heaviness of their spent pleasure. He was sharper, more within himself, and he felt the power of the Grimm.
Renard smiled, burying closer to the warm body next to him. The smell was unmistakable. Nick Burckhardt. His subordinate at work, a Grimm, and now his mate.
His.
Not a subordinate; far from it. Nick would always be his equal.
Like a cool darkness, covering him, erasing the fever and the madness, Nick was now part of him. The lure of the coins was only an afterthought, a bad taste in his mouth, roiling through him like a nightmare. He had wanted the coins so badly, had needed them to be better, to be the ruler they wanted, to be powerful and charismatic. He had charmed everyone, the press, his subordinates, the mayor. He had had everything at the tip of his fingers, his to control and his to rule.
But never Nick.
The ache of the loneliness at that thought had for one insanely sane second driven back the lure of the coins, but then the veil had reasserted itself.
He had dreamed of Nick. Had wanted him with him, naked in bed, underneath the dark, silky sheets, bearing his marks. He had wanted him at his side, as his partner, facing the crowds of loyal followers. He had wanted him to share this city with him.
But Nick hadn't been influenced by the coins. Nick was his own, he was free and untamed, he was everything to the regnant. Renard would never have gotten him to bed, let alone even closer to him, with the coins.
Thinking of his plans now, it disgusted him. He would have forced himself on his mate, would have taken what hadn't been offered freely, but the coins had left him with no doubt. They had enhanced his lust, his needs, and if Nick had come under the influence of the cursed coins, he would have done whatever Renard had wanted him to do – without ever thinking it was wrong.
Sean ran a gentle caress over the naked form in his bed and admired his mate. Pale skin, nicely muscled, faint scars of prior encounters with creatures that hadn't been happy to see a Grimm.
Just touching Nick spread assurance through him. He wasn't alone any longer. He would never be alone again. The distress of before had vanished, making room for clarity and self-awareness, for contentment and security.
He let claws emerge, trailed over the scars, then let his mouth follow. Even if the injuries were old and healed, the scars still fading, he wanted to soothe them. He knew there would be no chance to keep Nick from getting injured in the future, but he still hated the very idea.
The regnant's eyes fell on the obvious signs of the claiming, but there was no rush rising inside him to apologize. Nor was there regret. The coins hadn't been able to give this to him. The Grimm had resisted. His mate was strong, immune to the coins, so much more than the regnant. There was no doubt in his mind who was in control.
The emotions inside him churned.
Nick was a solidity in him he couldn't yet grasp, so sharp and distinct, the regnant bowed to the power. He had no qualms submitting to this man because he knew the Grimm would never take advantage of it.
When Nick had come to the precinct, fresh off the Academy, a rookie, Renard had been unable to take his eyes off him. He had known back then; everything had been clear.
His mate.
His perfect match. His equal.
He had dug into the younger man's background and he had found the connection to the Grimms, and he had felt this intense pleasure course through him at the very thought that one day his mate would be the Grimm. It was like trying to tame fire, like handling the most volatile of substances, like wanting the impossible.
Nick moved and blinked his eyes open. He didn't look panicky or like he had no idea where he was. If at all, he appeared just as lazy and relaxed as Renard felt. A slow smile spread over his features.
It was a smile Sean couldn't resist. It drew him in, made him Nick's.
"Morning," the Grimm whispered.
"A very good one," Renard replied.
It got him a wide, warm smiled. A smile he had seen on Nick's face so often before and he had longed to have it directed at him.
"No regrets?" he asked carefully.
"You?" Nick replied, brows rising.
"No."
"I hope not because I thought it was hot."
Sean chuckled. "I simply regret my hesitation to wait this long."
Nick still looked at him with those intense eyes, gray and deep and reflecting more than anyone else would ever know about him. Renard was lost in that gaze. He had waited so long and now he had this, had Nick, as more than a mate who had no idea who Renard was, only to be touched froma far.
Memories of the claiming were hazy. He recalled raw need and arousal, mixed with the knowledge that Nick was his. By the way his mate moved, he still felt the remnants of that fact.
No forced sex, no blackmail, no pressure. It had been voluntary and it had been so, so good.
Because this handsome man was the perfect match for him.
His. His alone. No one could take Nick from him, not even another regnant. If any of his kin or kind tried, they would die. It had never happened in their history because to take a mate was the worst crime.
The need to have Nick had eradicated all other thought. He had fought the primal impulses for as long as he could, but then…
…not any more.
"You okay?" he wanted to know.
With the feverish heat of the mating gone, with the influence of the coins no longer clouding his judgment, his logical side had come forth. He still remembered the coin-induced dreams, of so much power, of loyal followers, of what he could do by just uniting everyone in his territory against crime. He hadn't dreamed of taking Nick and making him his; it would have made him sick remembering such a thing.
The coins had only enhanced everything tenfold. It had been like a drug-induced high. And no coming down again; only the high. He had been lured into this dream and the withdrawal had been terrible.
Renard also remembered the wild hunger for his mate, wanting him with him, wanting Nick to come to him, to be his.
Here he was now. Voluntarily. Wanting him of his own free will. Wanting not only the human, but also accepting and wanting the creature.
"I'm fine," Nick answered, an easy smile on his lips.
Fingers trailed over his chest, following invisible lines, drawing patterns. They brushed over his sides where the tattoos stood out against his skin. He would have to tell Nick about their meaning. He would have to tell his mate so much and hope he would understand. Renard knew that some of the truths he would have to reveal would shock Nick, maybe even drive him into hostility, but he fervently hoped that they could and would work through it.
Everything he had done had been to protect his city and with it his mate.
Nick seemed to pick up on his changing mood, brows drawing down a little. His caress never stopped.
"Sean?"
"Nothing," he replied, knowing that it was a lie and sooner or later they had to talk. "I'm just… amazed."
It got him another warm smile, though he wasn't fooled into thinking Nick hadn't noticed the lie. "Yeah."
Renard's eyes were on the bite in Nick's shoulder. His fangs were long and sharp and had sliced into the warm flesh, but the bleeding had been contained. He reached out and trailed a feather-light caress over the scabbed wounds.
The primal side purred with satisfaction.
And Nick looked knowingly at him.
"It's going to smart for a day or two," the regnant murmured, leaning down to lick over the injury. "But there won't be an infection."
"Saliva?"
"Yes."
Nick took that in a stride.
Renard let a hand glide over the smooth, pale chest with its spattering of dark hair. Faint, reddish marks spoke of his claws, but he hadn't broken the skin. By tonight the scratches would be gone. He kissed his Grimm, gently at first, testing the waters, then with more demand. Nick's fingers carded into his hair, holding him in place as he answered the kiss just as fiercely.
Renard nipped at the lower lip and grinned, snaking one hand to caress Nick's buttocks. Part of him wondered how often he had claimed his mate. From Nick's reaction, the sudden widening of his pupils as Renard let an explorative finger slide inside, followed by a moan, it had been several times. But that sound hadn't been painful, more like slight stimulation…
The regnant fought to get his brain out of the gutter and back on track. It wasn't the time to talk kinks. He would keep it in mind, though.
"I think we'll have to think of something else for the next time," he murmured, removing his hand.
While sinking into his mate was heaven, he would never voluntarily hurt Nick.
"As long as the next time isn't right now," Nick remarked.
Renard kissed him again, running calming hands over the lean sides, reveling in the feel and taste of his mate.
"Sean…"
The gray eyes were knowing. Renard didn't feel the slightest bit of embarrassment.
"Possessive much?" Nick teased.
It got him a shrug.
His grandmother had once told him that to find the perfect partner would be a matter of seconds, a matter of the sure knowledge that this was the one, and that if he found the one, he would know what to do.
He had found Nick years ago and he had marked him as his mate in a very subtle way. He had never claimed him.
Now he had.
In a way the regnant in him had done that; he had given the creature free reign, had let the primal side take over in the sure knowledge that he would never hurt the other man.
"Sorry about… that…" He meant the bite.
"Heat of the moment?"
"In a way."
"You lost it."
Renard let his head sink onto the warm shoulder, sighting. "Yes. It's been a while since that happened so… completely. I apologize."
Nick's fingers played over his neck, calming the upset creature inside him. He let himself enjoy the caresses, relaxing a little.
"I trust you, Sean. You didn't hurt me. I just hope the scarring won't be too obvious. I don't want to explain that to a nurse or a doctor."
He looked up. Nick smiled softly, the Grimm so accepting and calm it boggled Renard's mind. He kissed him gently. Their mouths dragged over each other, tongues teasing.
"I have to get into work today," Nick murmured lazily when they separated. "Reports to write et cetera. My boss is a hardass when it comes to that."
Renard chuckled, enjoying the relaxed atmosphere way too much. "I heard."
"And you have today off because you got whacked on the head."
"Hm."
"Doctor's orders."
"I'm okay."
"I know you are." Nick kissed him, then wriggled a little.
Renard reluctantly let him go, eyes on the slender, pale form as Nick went into the bathroom. He had to hold himself back not to follow. It wouldn't end with just sharing the shower.
Nick had work to do. And he had a few things to take care of himself.
tbc...