Page 26 of Pisces Rising

Aries met her gaze unflinchingly. "I can't, Pisces. You and Scorpio together...plotting against me. That betrayal is not something I can easily let go of."

Pisces shook her head vehemently, frustrated that his stubbornness prevented him from seeing the truth. "It wasn't real, Aries. It was a misunderstanding, a trick. Why can't you see that? There’s something bigger at play here, and it’s pitting us all against each other." She moved closer to the bed, desperation clawing at her throat. "What do I have to do to prove myself to you?"

Something shifted in Aries' expression then, a heat kindling in his dark eyes. In one swift motion, he sat up and seized Pisces' wrist, pulling her down onto the bed with him. She gasped as she found herself pinned beneath his solid weight, his face mere inches from hers.

"Prove it," he growled, his breath hot against her skin. "Show me that you're mine and mine alone."

Pisces' heart raced, desire battling with the anger and hurt within her. She wanted to push him away, to make him suffer as he'd made her suffer. But the feel of his body against hers, the intensity of his gaze...it was intoxicating. She arched up against him, her lips parting in a silent invitation.

Aries' mouth crashed down on hers, hungry and demanding. Pisces yielded to him, surrendering to the scorching heat of his kiss. His hands roamed over her body, igniting sparks wherever they touched. She locked her hands behind his neck, holding him close, never wanting to let go.

With a grunt, Aries laced his fingers through her hair and tugged, exposing her neck before dragging his lips down her throat. The heat emanating from him should have been enough to kill, but instead, it flowed through her, pulling her deeper into the molten core of his energy.

“Pisces...” Her name was a hungry growl as he slid his hand between them and lifted the edge of her t-shirt high enough to expose her breasts.

His eyes flared at the sight of them, and he dove, his mouth kissing and licking her tender skin before he clenched her nipple between his teeth.

A small cry escaped her. “Aries...”

Waves of hot breath caressed her, and he grunted and swooped back up to capture her lips while pressing the ridge of his shaft against her thigh. The weight of him, his unyielding, muscled form, imprisoned her, and as his arousal grew, so did the intensity of his energy. His rough hand traveled down again, yanking at her panties, and he slid his fingers inside her.

She whimpered and then gasped at the power of his touch. This celestial creature was forged of fire and sprung from the stars, and suddenly, Pisces realized the danger of this encounter in her mortal form.

“Aries,” she tried to say against his lips, his cosmic energy threatening to steal her breath entirely. He was single-minded, untamed, stripped down to the carnal essence that bore him. So absorbed in the moment, he didn’t respond to her desperate pleas.

She pushed at the hard planes of his chest, arousal and mortal danger coming together in a whirlwind of fire until she didn’t think she could withstand the force. With his entire being claiming her, Pisces was losing herself in the sensations. If he didn’t stop, his energy was going to consume her like a black hole. She gave one final, frantic push on his chest and screamed, “Aries!”

He stopped, finally hearing her, and jerked back to rest on his knees, panting. They both stared at each other in silence, disoriented and shaken. Pisces struggled to catch her breath, her body trembling with the remnants of his energy. And as he watched her, realization dawned on his handsome face, his mind and body finally coming together to grasp the severity of what he’d nearly done. “I’m sorry,” he breathed. “I lost myself. Forgot how fragile you are.”

Aries ran a hand through his dark hair and opened his mouth to speak again just as a sharp knock sounded at the door.

"Aries, Pisces!" Sag's voice called from the other side. "You need to come to the lab. Virgo has found something."

Aries got off the bed, and the moment shattered. He took a deep breath, composing himself. "We'll be right there," he called back, his voice surprisingly steady. He looked down at Pisces, mixed emotions swirling in his eyes. “Are you all right?”

Pisces nodded, trying to calm her racing heart as she smoothed down the rumpled T-shirt.

He rubbed a hand over his face and then extended it to her. “Go to your cabin and change. We should go see what they want."

All she could do was nod again, part heated, part ashamed, and part terrified. She felt him behind her as she walked to her cabin but dared not look back, her mind reeling from the whiplash of emotions and afraid of what she might see in the dark, endless pools of those eyes.

Chapter

Twenty-Three

Aries marched into Virgo's lab with commanding strides, Pisces trailing behind him. They found the studious Zodiac hunched over a series of computers with Sagittarius at his side. The natural wanderer and explorer was practically vibrating at the prospect of exploring new realms and portals.

Off to the side, Gemini lounged in a computer chair, idly tossing a coconut into the air. "You need more entertainment on this island," she drawled. "I've been to Nassau—would it kill you to have Taurus build some water slides? Or get Aquarius to open a club?"

Virgo huffed, sparing her an indulgent glance. "That would require allowing humans to set foot here, and I don't think either of us is interested in that."

As Aries stepped into the room, their heads turned, and a heavy silence fell over them as they stared at their resurrected ruler. Virgo was the first to speak as he rose from his chair. "Aries...Pisces..." he began hesitantly. "I'm relieved you're..."

"Restored from the oblivion you all abandoned me to?" Aries cut him off, jaw tensing as he glared with smoldering eyes.

Pisces hung back, giving Aries space to confront his dubious cohorts. The accusation hung heavy in the air. Virgo held up a placating hand. "We couldn't intervene," he stated evenly. "You know our powers are limited here compared to the celestials. Especially against...whatever that was."

Aries exhaled through his nostrils as his eyes blazed across each of them. "It was an illusion, you fools. It wasn't real. I knew it when I thought I'd killed it, and it vanished." The Zodiac stared in stunned silence until Sag finally spoke up, his face shadowed with reluctance. “Aries, it was as if we couldn't move." He cast a glance at Virgo and Gemini. "Like our minds were frozen, our bodies turned off."

---