by Alyssa Breck
He cocked one eyebrow. “Yes. Now pull that heat you’re feeling like it’s water from a lake.”
She took a deep breath and concentrated on the ball of fire in her tummy. Her palm started to heat up and there were a few sparks but nothing else.
“That’s good. You’re almost there. Pull a little harder. Come on, you can do it.”
She rubbed her hands together and put her palm out again. Alayah licked her lips and held her breath. This time, the heat traveled from her core and down her arm. Sparks shot from her fingertips, and a fireball materialized in her palm.
A smile tugged at her lips. “I did it.”
“Yes, you did. See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“No. Thanks.”
Xavier leaned forward and blew the fireball out of her hand. “That’s magic.”
Then, he moved in closer and kissed her lips before she could protest. Not that she would have. His mouth was warm, and his breath smelled like honey.
“We should get back,” she said as she licked the spot where he’d landed the kiss.
Xavier’s kiss still haunted her thoughts as she tossed and turned on the bed of the inn. She didn’t know what to do. Xavier had been nice to her. She felt attracted to him. She wasn’t going to deny that. However, she felt as if she was hurting Silver if she played Xavier’s seduction game. She had to clarify things once and for all.
Getting up, she left the bedroom she was sharing with Marina, Lyra, and Kiera and knocked on Silver’s door.
Silver opened the door and peeked outside.
“Can we talk?” Alayah asked.
Silver frowned and looked behind her. “Now?”
“Well, yes. Unless you’re too busy.”
He rubbed a soft cloth over the blade of his sword. “I have a few minutes.”
Opening the door farther, she entered and followed him to his bed.
Silver took a seat and folded his arms over his chest.
Alayah sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “You are still acting as if I mean nothing to you, so I have no idea why I’m here to tell you this.”
He frowned. “We have a mission …”
Alayah raised her hand to stop him from speaking. “Save it. I just want you to hear this from me.”
“What?”
“Xavier kissed me.”
There was an almost imperceptible flare of Silver’s nostrils. “And?”
“I’m not sure how I feel about it. Or how I feel about him.”
“You barely know him. And, seriously, Alayah, we have much more important stuff to worry about right now.” He got up.
Alayah leaned forward and raised her head to look at him. She grabbed his arm and pushed him down for him to take a seat. “You’re important to me, Silver, but I can’t shake the feeling that you’re distancing yourself. Are you?”
“We could all die on this journey. You know that, right?”
“Of course, I do.”
He kept his eyes on his sword.
“Were you lying when you confessed your feelings for me?” Her heart stopped beating as sadness returned to burn inside her chest.
Silver shook his head. “I wasn’t lying. I love you.”
“I love you, too. So why are you pushing me away?”
He pulled his arm from her and refused to look in her eyes. “You are better off away from me. Maybe it’s best if you choose Xavier instead of me.”
“I don’t want to have to choose. Until a few days ago, Xavier wasn’t even in the equation. You are the one I love, Silver. Why are you being an asshole?”
Clenching his jaw, he looked at her. “It’s for your own safety. As much as I love you, Xavier can give you what I can’t. I’ve accepted that, and even if it hurts, I know that he will keep you safe.”
She rose to her feet with balled fists. “I can keep myself safe, and I can decide for myself who I want in my bed. You aren’t the one who tells me who I should or shouldn’t love. If you don’t want anything else to do with me, fine. I’ll stop chasing you, and I’ll forget that we ever shared the same bed. I’ll be professional about this from now on. Deal?”
He endured her gaze. “I have important matters to deal with now. I can’t have this conversation with you.”
“You just have to say yes or no. It’s easy. Yes or no, Silver?”
No reply.
Leaning down, she grabbed the collar of his jacket and drew him closer before smashing her lips against his. She thought that he would push her away, but he didn’t. Instead, his hands dropped on her hips and his lips responded to the invasion of her mouth. They kissed, hungrily at first only to morph into something tender and breathtaking.
Then, he pushed her back, and she gasped and tried to keep her balance.
“Don’t make this harder than it needs to be,” Silver mumbled as he pursed his lips and stood.
“Silver …” She edged closer, but he stopped her. “Stop being stubborn.”
He shook his head. “Was our kiss better than yours with him?”
Alayah glared at him. “Are you going to play that game?”
He leaned closer to her face. “Was it or not?”
“I don’t know. I should go to him and find out,” she snapped.
“Maybe you should,” he dared her.
His words were like a slap in the face. Tears burned her eyes, but she blinked them away.
“Fine,” she shouted at him.
“Fine.”
Breathing deeply, she turned around and stormed out of his bedroom. He could go to hell if he was that set in breaking her heart into pieces.
“Love, my ass,” she muttered as she walked toward the tavern.
Unwinding before a mission had become a tradition of sorts. The sirens were drinking, laughing, and talking with some of Silver’s samurais.
Alayah spotted Marina as she made her way across the bar.
“Alayah, over here.” The siren waved at her.
Alayah smiled to cover up her unhappiness from what had happened with Silver. She had no idea why he was acting like that and saying those things to her. She refused to believe that they couldn’t be together.
Was he jealous of Omin? Was he scared that she might not return for him? She had no idea what was going on his head. Still, she knew that she didn’t want to give up on him.
Kiera passed her a mug of beer. “Drink up.”
Alay took a sip and set the drink down on the laminated surface of the bar. “Why does beer taste so bad?”
“Say what?” Xavier slid onto the stool beside her. “Did I hear you right? You don’t like beer?”
“It’s not my first choice, but I doubt this place has anything better.”
He left the table and smacked his hand on the counter.
The barkeep scurried over. A dirty-looking hand towel hung over his shoulder. “What can I get you, sir?”
“I’ll have a beer, and the lady will have your finest wine.”
“Oh, the wine is scarce. It’s very expensive, sir.”
“Not a concern.” Xavier set a gold piece on the table. “I trust this will cover the cost.”
The bartender nodded enthusiastically. “Oh, yes. Yes. That will do fine.” He proceeded to set a crystal goblet on the counter and filled it with red wine from a bottle he, obviously, stowed out of sight.
“There you go,” Xavier said, edging closer to Alay and pushing the glass toward her.
She smiled. “Why, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He sat and chugged his beer.
The barkeep refilled his glass twice more. While Alayah enjoyed two glasses of wine before her head started to spin.
“I think I’ve hit my limit.”
“Lightweight.” Xavier laughed.
Alayah shrugged. “I do okay.”
The sirens were starting to disperse.
“Will you be going to Silver’s room tonight?” Xavier asked as he downed the last bit of beer in his glass.
Alayah
looked at the glass. “Not tonight.”
“Trouble in paradise?”
“No,” she lied. “I just don’t feel like it tonight.”
He leaned closer. “You are so pretty. Do you mind if I kiss you again?”
“Are you asking now? No more stealing,” she teased him and giggled.
“Was it that bad?”
“It wasn’t bad, but I feel like we need Silver’s permission to do it again.” She ended her explanation with a chuckle as she felt the room spin around. “I’m doomed.” Patting his shoulder, she added, “Silver won’t be fine. He said he would, but I know he’s lying.”
“What if we went to my brother’s bedroom and asked him?”
Alayah’s eyes widened . “That’s a great idea! If he sees us together, then he will know that I’m being serious, and he needs to stop being an asshole if he doesn’t want to lose me.”
“I’m always full of great ideas,” he mumbled with droopy eyes. His elbow glided from the table, and he almost fell back. Straightening up as Alayah laughed at his groggy state, he grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the table. “We are doing this. I’m going to talk to my new brother, and you won’t need to feel guilty when we kiss again.”
Alayah tried to coordinate her steps as she followed behind Xavier. They took longer to climb to their floor than usual because the floor kept spinning.
Chapter 37
Giggling, Alayah and Xavier stood in front of Silver’s bedroom door.
“Hush!” Xavier said as he placed his finger in front of his lips.
Alayah bounced forward, aiming her eyes at his lips. “You have pretty lips.”
He chuckled and pouted. “Give me a kiss then.”
“No.” She pointed at the door. “Ask him.”
Xavier closed his fist and threw it at the door. It barely made any noise.
“Like this.” Alayah showed him as she knocked on Silver’s door.
“Like this?” Xavier asked, knocking again. “This is fun. Look at me playing music.” His fist kept bumping against the wood.
A few seconds later, a sleepy Silver opened the door and stared at them.
“What?” He frowned. “What are you doing here? Are you drunk?”
“Brother!” Xavier cheered.
Someone peeked their head from another bedroom and hushed them. “Quiet! There are people trying to sleep.”
“You be quiet. I’m speaking with my brother,” Xavier said to them.
The person slammed the door, and Silver pulled Xavier inside and grabbed Alayah before she fell on the floor.
“Silver,” she mumbled as she smiled. His pretty face swirled in front of her eyes. “You’re so pretty even when you’re all distorted.”
“No. No. Not tonight. Tonight, you are mine,” Xavier protested, pulling Alayah away from Silver’s arms.
“What’s happening and why you are in front of my bedroom making noise. Don’t you know where your bedrooms are?”
“Grumpy,” Alayah complained.
Xavier nodded and turned Alayah to Silver. “Do you see this woman?” He didn’t wait for his reply. “I love her. I’m not even kidding. I really do. But I also like you a lot. You are my new brother. I respect you. So, I need to ask you something.”
“Alayah and I are no longer a couple. You don’t need to ask me anything,” Silver muttered.
“I want to kiss her,” Xavier said as if he hadn’t heard Silver’s words. He snorted. “I want to do a lot more than kissing but let’s just start there.”
“I’m tired and need to rest. Please leave.” Silver walked to the door.
Xavier grabbed his arm and prevented him from moving. “She loves you. I love her and stole a kiss. Now, she’s feeling guilty, and you are jealous.”
“I’m not jealous.”
“Then can we share her?”
Silver folded his arms. “She’s a person, not a thing to be shared.”
“I don’t mind sharing her with you. You’re my brother. Brothers share things. Don’t they?”
“Not women,” Silver protested.
Alayah walked forward and grabbed Silver’s arm. “I want to kiss you.”
“And me?” Xavier asked.
“You too. But Silver is mad, so I want to kiss him first.”
“You are drunk and need to go to sleep,” Silver said, pushing Alayah away.
“Sleep is a good idea.” Xavier grabbed Alayah’s arm.
“Not with her. She stays here.” Silver pulled Alayah back to his side. “She’s too drunk to know what she’s doing. If you love her like you claim you do, you’ll stop this nonsense.”
Xavier groaned and stabbed his chest. “I wasn’t planning to do anything besides sleep. What do you think I am?”
Alayah pouted and pulled on Silver’s arm. “Can I sleep with both of you again? It was fun the last time.”
“Oh, it would be really fun,” Xavier teased with arched eyebrows. “But he’s too much of a prude for that.”
Sighing, Silver rubbed his temples. “Alayah, go sleep in your own room. Xavier, you’ll sleep in your bedroom.”
“I don’t want to go to my bedroom. Marina and Lyra are probably having fun, and they are pretty loud.”
“Oh, I want to see that,” Xavier said, rubbing his hands together. “I’ll trade you. You sleep in my bedroom, and I’ll sleep in yours.”
“No one is sleeping anywhere,” Silver raised his voice. “I can’t believe that I’m going to say this, but Alayah will stay in my bed, and Xavier and I will sleep in his bedroom.”
Xavier halted. “I like you, but not that much, bro.”
Silver narrowed the space between them and slapped the back of Xavier’s head. “I don’t like you in that way, either. Stop being a pervert.”
Alayah stumbled to the bed and sat down. “I’m still waiting for my kiss. I’m not going to bed without a goodnight kiss.” She fell back on the bed and looked at the ceiling. “Everything is spinning and … there are stars. Pretty stars.” She giggled. “Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.”
Xavier spoke, but she couldn’t see him. “I want to kiss her.”
Silver exhaled and grumbled. “You were the one who told me to stay away from her. Why do you need my permission?”
“Why doesn’t Xavier want you near me?” Alayah asked.
The bed caved under someone else’s body weight.
“Because I wanted you for myself,” Xavier said. “And I thought he wanted to hurt you.”
“I trust Silver with my life,” Alayah said and sighed deeply. “I’m sleepy.”
“I want to sleep with you.”
Alayah peeked at Xavier and grinned. “And our kiss?”
“We’ll kiss tomorrow when you are sober.”
“And Silver?”
“Silver …” He looked up and didn’t finish his sentence.
“I’ll let you both sleep here, but you have to take off your shoes and stop taking all the space.”
Alayah giggled. “See, I can trust Silver.” She yawned and closed her eyes. Someone removed her boots and grabbed her under her arms. She peeked and saw Silver unbuttoning her coat.
“Where’s Xavier?”
“Removing his clothes. You’ll stay in the middle, okay?”
“I like that idea.” She moved her hands to lace around his neck. Speaking closer to his ear, she breathed out. “Don’t make me choose. I don’t want to. I still love you more than life, but you need to stop pushing me away and breaking my heart.”
“We’ll talk tomorrow. Now sleep.” He kissed her cheek and laid her down in the middle of the bed.
Sighing, Alayah saw Xavier lie next to her. Hehe kissed her cheek. “Night, Alay.”
“Night, X.”
“Night, Silver.”
“Night, brother.”
The rest was all a blur, and Alayah woke up fully clothed with Xavier snoring beside her and no sign of Silver.
Chapter 38
The Badlands lived up to its name. For
a siren, it was especially awful to be in such heat with the desert in front and behind for miles. The sirens and the samurais were sheathed in light cloth to protect their faces from the sand and their skin from the burning sun.
Despite the wrapping, Alayah felt like the heat was leeching every bit of moisture from her body. Sirens weren’t as tolerant of the conditions as the samurais. They weren’t made that way; they needed water in large quantities.
They’d already been moving for days, but the landscape made it feel like they weren’t making any progress. The only water they had was what they had brought with them, so they had to use it sparingly. Nobody bathed or wasted water for anything besides hydration. Silver made sure that the sirens got a bigger share of the water. He cared and that made Alayah happy, even if he spent more time talking with Xavier than beside her. Things were confusing since they’d left the tavern.
Silver wanted to pretend that nothing happened, and Alayah and Xavier hadn’t shown up drunk in his bedroom. She was embarrassed about her conduct. Still, he refused to listen to her excuses. The only thing that changed was that he didn’t let her sleep with the other sirens. Every night, he grabbed her by the hand and showed her to his tent where he laid her beside him and held her until they both slept. Nothing more than that much to her despair. But, perhaps, it was for the best because the journey was long and her body was often sore, and her skin felt dry.
On the other hand, Xavier spent the time that he wasn’t talking with Silver beside Alayah. He didn’t try to kiss her again, but he was nice to her and made her laugh.
Alayah looked to the sky. The brightness of the sun made it almost impossible to see the blue or the clouds. The flying wyverns were like silhouettes as they crossed through the illumination. Their shrieks echoed in the quiet expanse of the desert. They were looking to feed. The group’s saving grace was that they were a group. It was harder for the flying predators to pick one of them off when they were all together.
The desert wasn’t conducive to warm-blooded, living things. It catered to cold-blooded creatures that slithered or swooped on unsuspecting victims.
The heat from the fire wasn’t really welcome because it was hot even after the sun dipped below the western horizon. But fire was the only defense they had against the famished desert dwellers who looked to feed in the cover of darkness.