Wicked Abyss Read online

  Knowing his clever mate, she'd long since figured that out, which meant she was playing along with him.

  Which meant she was perfect for him.

  She rose up again. "To make the changes I have in mind, I'll need a mountain of gold." Surprisingly, many demons wanted to remain in Sylvan as long as they could earn a fair wage and enjoy all the rights they'd been denied.

  "A mountain of it??" Sian demanded, making his tone stern. "You're worse than a sorceress. And what will I get in return?"

  As she lowered her body, she purred the words, "A dinner."

  He was having difficulty following the conversation, his mind absorbed with her tight heat. "Wait, you mean with my friends? Let me get this straight: I have to pay a fortune in gold for you to attend a meal with Rune and Josephine?"

  "Of course not, demon. You have to pay a fortune in gold, if you want their meal to be venom-free."

  "Is that so, firebrand? And of course, you wouldn't use your powers to play pranks on them?"

  She cast him an innocent look. "Define prank."

  Calliope needed to meet them--since he'd already invited them to the surprise coronation he was hosting for her in two weeks. He figured if she got along so well with Uthyr--Calliope had gotten him a battery-operated flat-screen TV for the throne room--she'd eventually come around with Rune and the rest of the Morior.

  Time to use his bargaining chip. He started to shift, his horns and wings burning.

  "No fair!" she cried. "Okay, okay. I'll . . . limit the pranks."

  "Good enough." He transitioned back, loving her relieved expression. She truly preferred him demonic. Considering her wholehearted approval of this form, he'd even begun to see himself differently.

  She grasped his hand and kissed his palm, her eyes shimmering teal.

  The color would always remind him of the hellfire tale passed down through his family.

  Calliope had taken him to see the towering blue inferno she'd described, but the hellfire had disappeared, its light unnecessary.

  Calliope was Sian's fire, and he was hers.

  He muttered in Demonish, "How can I resist you?"

  She replied in the same, "But we're just getting started. . . ."

  Pando-Sylvan Trade Negotiations

  ROUND 2

  Sprawled on their bed, Lila and the demon stared at the ceiling with their limbs tangled.

  One of his wings gave a halfhearted flutter, then drooped over the side of the mattress.

  She stretched, loving her new role as her queendom's chief negotiator. Though she'd much preferred to live within Graven, commuting to Sylvan via Uthyr's portals, she'd acted put out to Abyssian. "Must we live here?" she'd asked. He'd answered, "We must."

  She'd scored all kinds of concessions for Sylvan in that round. She suspected her husband saw right through her, but, man, did he like the games they played.

  Now she asked him, "How much did the legions strike today?"

  "I fear telling you lest you bleed me for even more." Abyssian's peace project was a success. The legions had already hit the mother lode.

  Slaughter Gorge was now officially known as the Orelands. Arm in arm, Lila and Abyssian had gazed out over the valley. In Demonish, he'd said, This is for you, brother. My queen and I will honor your legacy and care for hell in your stead. . . .

  "They did that well, huh?" Though she acted mercenary about the gold, both Pandemonia and Sylvan benefitted as trade partners and allies. Sylvan had limited gold to pay for imports and no ore for weapons. Pandemonia had no crops and only one slow-growing forest for lumber.

  The two realms fit as well as Lila and her demon, needing each other to a symbiotic degree.

  "We had a banner day," he admitted. "So I have much to negotiate with."

  She walked her fingers up his chest. "Then where were we?"

  "I was about to mount you from behind and pound your flesh till you scream for me." He rose up on his knees, reaching for her.

  Sexy demon. "I meant with our negotiation."

  "So did I." He flipped her over on her belly, then maneuvered her to all fours. She could feel his heated gaze as he murmured, "So fucking beautiful."

  Wriggling her ass, she said, "I'm taking a bold position this round. Do you think it'll pay off?"

  Gripping her hips, he gave her curves a light slap. "I'll make sure of it."

  Pando-Sylvan Trade Negotiations

  ROUND 10

  With a groan, Abyssian collapsed onto his back. "Mercy, firebrand! You'll get your gold. You'll get anything in the godsdamned universe."

  Lila curled up against his side as they caught their breath. "Then these negotiations have officially concluded." At last, she had power over her own destiny--and others' as well. Her pie-in-the-sky dreams weren't so far-fetched after all. "I'll send you a memo."

  He groaned again.

  "Demon, you really do love me, don't you?"

  His thought hit her. --She has no idea.--

  She rose up to slide him a grin, her heart ridiculously full.

  "There's that soft look. You really love me as well, do you not?"

  --Duh, relic.--

  He chuckled, the sound making her toes curl.

  She rested her head against his chest. "There is one other boon I'd like from you."

  "Name it."

  "I was really angry at those Sorceri bounty hunters at first, but now, I want to thank them. I'm not saying we should send them a fruit basket or anything, but could you make their dimension stop spinning?"

  "I can look into it. And I won't even demand anything in return from you. I'm thankful as well."

  She lazily grazed her nails over his torso. Wait . . . where's my-- "Oh, shit." She shot upright. "Have you seen my contraception ring?" She rooted through the tangled sheets.

  Abyssian helped her, but they couldn't find it. "Let me check something." He traced away, then returned a split second later with the ring. "It was among your jewels."

  "How? I never took it off. . . ." Her eyes went wide. "You think Graven did this?" Was the mystical demonic castle influencing their lives like a fairy godmother?

  Abyssian nodded, sitting against the headboard. When he reached for her, she crawled across the bed to him. "I suspect our home would prefer to be filled with younglings sooner rather than later." He pulled Lila across his lap, then handed her the ring.

  What a wild, incredible place for kids to grow up. Hellcats and spiders, hidden corridors and a jade beach, sea creatures and hellhounds.

  Uthyr had already volunteered for "pup duty."

  "But I was hoping to enjoy you all to myself for a while." She slipped the ring back on. "Will Graven take it again?"

  "I believe so. It might not happen for a century, a year"--he nuzzled her ear--"or a day. But when it does go missing three times . . ."

  She sighed. "We would never refuse a fourth."

  EPILOGUE

  The storyteller noticed that her audience had grown, and she was pleased that her listeners clamored for the ending of her tale. She told them: 'You see, our truehearted fairy princess and that cunning dame of darkness clashed--figuratively--and became one: a fitting mate for an adoring beast king with two faces. She would be his consort of Pandemonia, and he would be her consort of Sylvan, two united halves of one whole--for the betterment of all elven-and demonkind. And they lived happily ever (after a bitch of an Accession) after.' The moral of the story is that the Sylvan fey just allied with Pandemonia and the Morior."

  The Valkyries who'd gathered to listen to Nix's tale exchanged looks, then broke into heated discussions about this development.

  "But all fey are our staunch allies!"

  "This is how alliances crumble: one power at a time!"

  "I would do the dragon. What? Don't fucking judge me."

  "Why would Nix aid them?"

  "We must take back Sylvan before this hell queen solidifies her rule!"

  Amid the chaos, Nix rose and slipped outside. Gazing up at the stars, she w
hispered, "Your move, Orion."

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  DEANNA MEREDITH STUDIOS

  KRESLEY COLE is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the electrifying Immortals After Dark paranormal series, the young adult Arcana Chronicles series, the erotic Game Maker series, and five awardwinning historical romances. A master's grad and former athlete, she has traveled over much of the world and draws from those experiences to create her memorable characters and settings. You can learn more about her and her work at KresleyCole.com or Facebook.com/KresleyCole. Sign up for Kresley's email newsletter to receive the latest book release updates as well as information about contests and giveaways (KresleyCole.com/Newsletter).

  FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR: Authors.SimonandSchuster.com/KresleyCole

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  SimonandSchuster.com

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  BOOKS BY KRESLEY COLE

  The Immortals After Dark Series The Warlord Wants Forever A Hunger Like No Other No Rest for the Wicked Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night Dark Needs at Night's Edge Dark Desires After Dusk Kiss of a Demon King

  Deep Kiss of Winter

  Pleasure of a Dark Prince Demon from the Dark

  Dreams of a Dark Warrior Lothaire

  Shadow's Claim

  MacRieve

  Dark Skye

  Sweet Ruin

  Shadow's Seduction

  The Game Maker Series

  The Professional

  The Master

  The Player

  The Arcana Chronicles

  Poison Princess

  Endless Knight

  Dead of Winter

  Day Zero

  Arcana Rising

  The MacCarrick Brothers Series If You Dare

  If You Desire

  If You Deceive

  The Sutherland Series

  The Captain of All Pleasures The Price of Pleasure

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  Gallery Books

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  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright (c) 2017 by Kresley Cole All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address Gallery Books Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

  First Gallery Books hardcover edition April 2017

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  Cover Design by Lisa Litwack

  Cover Art (c) Sbayram/Getty Images (flames, front cover); (c) djiledesign/Getty Images (man) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Cole, Kresley, author.

  Title: Wicked abyss / Kresley Cole.

  Description: First Gallery Books hardcover edition. | New York : Gallery Books, 2017.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2016051391 (print) | LCCN 2016058224 (ebook) | ISBN 9781501120251 (hardback) | ISBN 9781501120565 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Paranormal romance stories. | BISAC: FICTION / Romance Paranormal. | FICTION Romance Fantasy. | FICTION Romance / General. | GSAFD: Fantasy fiction.

  Classification: LCC PS3603.O4287 W53 2017 (print) | LCC PS3603.O4287 (ebook) | DDC 813/.6--dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016051391

  ISBN 978-1-50112025-1

  ISBN 978-1-50112056-5 (ebook)