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  Snapped

  Book 3 in the Opposites series

  By T.M. Smith

  Copyright © 2017 TTC Publishing

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: TTC Publishing, Opposites,” at [email protected] {www.ttcbooksandmore.com}

  DO NOT DISTRIBUTE, COPY OR SHARE

  Est. Length: 51,187 words

  Foreword

  The story of the sun and the moon, told to Maeve as a child by her Papou

  The memory was shared in Book One, Opposites…

  It was a story about the children of the sun and the moon. The sun and the moon met in the sky one day as one rose and the other set. On this day, they met and mated. Two souls were created from their union, a boy and a girl. So alike they were and yet completely different. The son carried the darkness of the moon, and the daughter carried the light of the sun.

  “Is it us, Papou? Me and Tanis?” young Maeve questioned.

  “I suppose you could think of the story that way, but with you and your brother, you are the darkness of the moon, and he is the light of the sun.”

  Maeve frowned. “I don’t want to be dark, Papou.” He laughed at her comment, a full-on belly laugh.

  “Oh, my sweet little girl, I don’t mean darkness in a bad way. Your beautiful dark hair and hazel eyes and the strength you don’t even realize you possess yet. Then just look at your brother; his hair shines like the rays of the sun, and his eyes are as blue as the sky.”

  This is a reimagining of a story that always fascinated me, The Romance of the Sun and the Moon. Copyright – The Weaving of the Crystal River – CrystalRivers.com http://www.crystalrivers.com/stories/sun_and_moon.html

  Glossary of terms

  Jobby – Scottish “a pile of shit”

  Mo Ghrá – Celtic “My Love”

  M’Anam – Celtic “My Soul”

  Allive plant – a hybrid of an Aloe Vera plant and an Olive tree that is used as a natural lubricant

  GWI – Global Warming Ignition

  Outkast – People who chose to live outside of the Houses and play by their own rules

  Opposite – Person that is attracted to the opposite sex

  Papou – Greek “Grandfather”

  Cover art: Jay Aher of Simply Defined Art

  Beta readers: Zane Kage, Cathy Brockman and Carra Saigh.

  Editing: Flat Earth Editing

  Note: Opposites is a work of Fiction. While there may be names of people, places and things that you have seen or heard before, nothing you are fixing to read is factual.

  Thank you to all my readers that have been patiently waiting for this book, to see what happened after the chain of events in Appearances. I love you all so much and I hope you’re happy with the journey the characters in this world are on. And I promise not to put two years between this book and the next.

  Snapped

  The line between retribution and vengeance is often just as thin as the line between love and hate.

  Cillian feels his life was stolen from him and is out for revenge. Grieving and seeking retribution for the death of his twin sister, August is easy prey. Cillian latches on to his grief and feeds into it, using the Outkast as a weapon to strike out at the family that abandoned him. When August learns the truth behind his sister's death, everything changes.

  Hector arrives at House Gaeland for a wedding, only to wind up in the middle of an unexpected war between brothers. He finds himself inexplicably drawn to an Outkast with hair as fiery as his temper. The immediate, intense, and mutual attraction stirs up an entirely different set of issues. To be together, August and Hector will need to thwart the most evil of plans and accomplish the most daring of rescues, all before Cirian follows through with his threat to drop August off the side of a cliff.

  The people of House Gaeland have endured much, and yet, there is more trouble on the horizon. A birth and a wedding are far too much happiness for the universe to allow, so to level the playing field, the devil must add his cards to the deck. Violence begets violence and Cirian is perfectly willing to take a dagger to his brother, if need be. Will he feel the same if the blood spilled belongs to someone much closer to his heart?

  Snapped is the third book in the Opposites series; the series must be read in order. It is an adult, dystopian, majorly M/M series that encompasses all manners of relationships (including M/F and F/F). In this world logic is irrelevant, love is key, and things get broken—just ask Aiyan and Kaden.

  Dedication

  For my grandfather, who left us when we were just getting to know each other again. I miss you every damn day, but I’m grateful for the time we had and that you were surrounded by family in the end. Most of all, I’m grateful of the person you were, a man that loved his family unconditionally.

  RIP Robert Anthony

  Cast of Characters…

  House Gaeland

  Fathers ~ Cirian and Rian ~ Mothers ~ Amaya and Amelia

  Twins ~ Aiya, Maeve and Swayer & Aiyan and Kaden

  Raven, the Head of The Order and Tanis 2nd in command of the Gardai

  The Order is housed at House Gaeland and consists of one member from each house

  The Priest, Ainee – the Geneticist, Richard as well as the Doctor, the Scientist, the Psychologist, the Philosopher who is a teacher and historian as well. While each member of The Order is fluent in all areas, their title is their specialty.

  House Devi

  Fathers ~ Arjun and Kadam ~ Mothers ~ Nadi and Yasmeen

  Kaden was born to this house and Sawyer was adopted by his parents

  House Orion

  Fathers ~ Taryn and Thanos ~ Mothers ~ Theresa and Ariadne

  Maeve and Tanis were born to this house as was Hector, the Captain of their Army

  House 人之初 rén zhī chū

  Ambassadors ~ Li and Sam, they are also in charge of the Samurai

  House Gilley

  Raven and Ian were born to this House

  Ambassadors ~ Kiernan and Gabriel, Cirian and Cillian's fathers

  Magdalena and Rose, Cirian and Cillian's mothers

  Gabriella/Gabry {Raven's mother, the Seer}

  House Uluru

  Ambassador ~ Rigston

  House Brasilia

  Ambassadors ~ Mateo, Thyago and Alessandra

  Amelia, the twins biological mother, was born to this House

  THE SEVEN SURVIVING COUNTRIES, HOUSES AND LOCATIONS

  United States (location, Colorado Mountains): House Gaeland

  Cultural makeup: USA, Canada, Alaska and surrounding areas

  India (location, Himalayan Mountains point in India):

  House Devi

  Cultural makeup: Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Sudan, Africa and surrounding areas

  Specific location HM/India 3rd highest elevation, Mount Devi

  China (location, Himalayan Mountains point in Asia):

  House 人之初 rén zhī chū Cultural makeup: China, Japan, Tibet, Russia, Thailand and surrounding areas specific location HM/Tibet highest elevation on the planet.

  Ren Zhi Chu translation in Asian: “New Beginnings”

  Greece (location, Mount Olympus): House Orion

  Cultural makeup: Greece, Turkey, Italy, Spain and surrounding areas

  Scotland (location, Ben Nevis): House Gilley

  Cultural makeup: Scotland, Ireland, Finland, France, UK and surrounding areas

  Australia (location, Mount Kosciuszko
): House Uluru

  Cultural makeup: Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Indonesia and surrounding areas

  Brazil (location, Pico da Neblina): House Brasilia

  Cultural makeup: Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Chili, Columbia and the surrounding areas - specific location, highest mountain range in the Amazon

  Prologue

  Marcus sat at the tiny kitchen table watching the baby in the bassinet set atop the table as he slept. It was far easier than he’d imagined it would be to find a woman to carry the child, then raise him until Marcus was ready to bring the boy to House Gaeland. One that would simply do as she was told without asking questions as long as Marcus paid her and provided her with a lavish but small apartment within the walls of House Orion.

  The baby jerked in his sleep, small hands reaching out and opening before he smacked his little lips a couple of times and settled back into the blanket he was wrapped in. Marcus gently rocked the bassinet to ensure the tiny bundle stayed quiet. “Shhh. Shhh. I have such grand plans for you, little one. I’ve already set you up with the best educators in Greece to teach you about your culture, your history, and when the time comes, how to be the best warrior in all the Houses.” Marcus spoke softly, not wanting the baby’s mother to hear him.

  “When the time comes, you will be the entry in the trials for The Order from House Orion. Then, together, you and I will destroy House Orion from within.” Marcus smiled at the sleeping infant, chuckling softly.

  For years, Marcus had been plotting and scheming ways to ensure House Orion would fall. He only hoped he could watch the destruction up close rather than from afar. Nothing would make Marcus happier than to see Thomas suffer after what he’d done to Marcus when they were teenagers. Thomas and Marcus had been best friends since they were children. They’d schooled and trained together, shared their first kiss together, and so much more as they grew into young men and discovered the pleasures of their bodies.

  But Thomas grew distant not long after Marcus started the trials for The Order. When Marcus was initiated as the Geneticist for The Order, he couldn’t fully enjoy the day or the celebration because the one person he wanted to celebrate with wasn’t there. He went into town and found Thomas that night, demanding to know what kept him away. And that was when Marcus learned truth and love couldn’t be further apart from each other, at least in his wronged mind. The man Marcus loved—and meant to spend his life with—had fallen in love with another.

  “Is he still sleeping?” Alana asked as she came into the room. She leaned over the bassinet and brushed her fingers across the sleeping baby’s cheek, smiling down at him. Their arrangement was one of money, secrecy, and convenience. And though she loved the child she’d carried, Alana knew—when her son was old enough, Marcus would move him to House Gaeland.

  “Marcus, what do you think?” Marcus shook his head, looking up at her quizzically. “The baby, Marcus, what do you think about calling him Apollo?”

  Chapter 1 | Settling In

  Raven stood in the doorway to Apollo’s room, watching the rise and fall of the little boy’s chest as he slept. Months had passed since they learned Marcus had appropriated Tanis’s sperm and manipulated a young servant girl who wanted the money and security Marcus promised her far more than she wanted the child she bore. This had made it easy for Raven and Tanis to assume custody of the child and move him to House Gaeland with them with little argument from his mother. She remained at House Orion and would see her son when they visited.

  So many changes had taken place in a short amount of time, and Raven was still acclimating to them all. He had taken the life of a man he thought of as a father—had inadvertently become a father himself after marrying the man he loved more than anything. And in an unavoidable turn of events, Raven had been named the Head of The Order. Raven seemed to thrive in the circle of chaos though, stepping up and taking charge of The Order seamlessly and stepping into the role of a father with almost practiced ease.

  Apollo mumbled something in his sleep before stirring and rolling onto his side, then going still again. Raven was about to turn and head back through the bathroom to his and Tanis’s room when he felt a pair of strong, familiar arms wrap around his waist, pulling him back into a warm embrace.

  “Is he asleep?” Tanis asked, dipping his head down into the crook of Raven’s neck and running his lips across the exposed skin, causing Raven to shudder in his arms. Raven nodded, unable to speak through the immediate rush of emotions enveloping him at the mere thought of what Tanis’s mood conveyed.

  “Close the door,” Tanis whispered, not relinquishing his hold on Raven or lifting his lips off his husband’s skin. The door was barely shut before Tanis spun Raven around and shoved him against the wall. Tanis held him there, bodies pressed together, his erection already hot and hard, digging into Raven’s hip.

  “I want you, right here, right now,” Tanis whispered in his ear, his hot breath causing Raven’s eyes to roll back into his head before the implication of the words caught up with his sex-addled brain.

  “No!” Raven gasped, trying in vain to shove Tanis off him. “Not right here; Apollo will hear us.”

  Tanis silenced him with a blistering kiss as he ran the tips of his fingers under the waist of Raven’s sleep pants before breaking the seal of their lips and dropping to his knees, dragging Raven’s pants to the floor. Before Raven could protest further, he was engulfed in the wet heat of Tanis’s mouth. He brought his fist up to his mouth, biting down on his knuckles to stop from crying out or moaning as Tanis set up a relentless and very effective rhythm, bringing Raven to the point of orgasm within seconds.

  Raven lay his head back against the wall and closed his eyes, taking deep breaths, trying to stave off his impending orgasm. With his and Tanis’s new roles within The Order and The Gardai as well as becoming parents, almost overnight, times like this where they could be together in the most raw, primal way were no longer a daily occurrence. One thing that hadn’t changed was the way Tanis looked at him: with more emotion in the depths of his eyes than could ever be put into words. The way he was looking at him right then.

  “God…you are beautiful.” Tanis spoke softly but reverently as he sat back on his heels between Raven’s spread legs, staring at him with a sparkle in his eyes. Raven felt so open, vulnerable, and loved just from the look in his husband’s eyes. Knowing that Tanis meant every word only added to the affection Raven felt for the man.

  “Just look at you, all flushed and sweaty, your cock standing at attention for me…so responsive.” Raven muttered a thank-you, but the words came out garbled and sounding more like a moan as Tanis slowly slid back up the length of his body with his tongue, stopping to circle each pert nipple before diving into Raven’s hungry mouth again.

  Grasping one of Raven’s thighs in a strong, tight grip, Tanis lifted Raven’s leg and wrapped it around his waist before reaching behind his lover’s back and running an already slicked finger down the crease of his ass. Raven didn’t know or care where Tanis was hiding the stem from the allive plant he’d obviously used as two fingers breached his quivering hole to penetrate and punish his prostate. He dug his fingers into Tanis’s shoulders as Tanis deepened the kiss, swallowing the loud moan Raven fed him.

  He couldn’t hide the shriek that came out when Tanis grabbed him by the ass and hitched him up against the wall, both of Raven’s legs now wrapped around his waist. Raven quickly tightened his thighs against the slim hips he knew were fixing to pound him into the wall and wrapped his arms around Tanis’s neck. Grabbing an ass cheek in each hand, Tanis spread him open as he slowly sheathed his long, throbbing organ all the way inside Raven with one agonizingly slow push.

  Raven’s mouth opened, ready to cry out, but Tanis shoved his tongue in before he could utter more than a gasp and the beginnings of a groan. Tanis fucked Raven’s mouth with his tongue, keeping a steady pace with his cock, driving deep inside Raven’s body, hard and steady. Raven could feel his belly tightening with every thrust,
his balls so full and heavy he thought they might literally explode if he didn’t come…and soon.

  Raven’s body was tingling, on the cusp of release, but the angle of penetration coupled with the pain in his back from being repeatedly slammed into the hard and unforgiving tile of the bathroom wall was hindering his completion of the task at hand. Tanis seemed to sense Raven’s frustration because in the blink of an eye, Raven found himself on his feet being spun around and shoved facedown onto the bathroom counter.

  Before he could utter so much as one syllable, Tanis’s throbbing cock was buried balls deep in his ass again. The only thing stopping Raven from crying out was the child sleeping mere feet away on the other side of the closed door.

  “Shhhhh, don’t want to wake him, do you?” Tanis whispered against the back of his neck as he slammed into him again. Raven could feel the tension in his husband’s body as those thick arms wrapped around him, reaching down and taking Raven in hand, long pulls on his cock keeping rhythm with the dick driving into his ass.

  His hips moved of their own volition, thrusting into the warmth of Tanis’s hand and when Tanis flicked his thumb over Raven’s slit, it was all he could do not to shout out his pleasure. Instead, he bit down hard on his bottom lip as his body convulsed, shooting stream after stream of come over his belly and the counter. Tanis gripped his shoulders, holding Raven in place as he continued to drive into him, forcing Raven up onto his tiptoes with each push. He could feel Tanis’s cock twitching and convulsing inside his ass, feel the heat rush up inside him as Tanis came, holding him tight against his body, jerking and panting.