“Why do you want to-” Caleb’s hand landed over my mouth and he glanced up at the sky for a moment before pushing the power restricting bangles over my wrists. He scooped me into his arms in the next breath and shot down the dark stairs before I had a chance to object.
I gasped as we plunged beneath the earth, moving down and down until finally racing along a passageway which must have led beneath the lake itself.
The world flipped upright again and I bit my lip as I looked around at the space we found ourselves in. We stood in a bubble formed of smooth stone beneath our feet and thick glass above our heads where I could just make out the movement of dark water against the other side of it. Around the edges of the room orange flames flickered in a circle and the air I drew in between my lips was sharp and fresh like the morning after a storm.
“This place is designed for Fae to look at the stars not the other way around, and it will mask our presence from them for the most part,” Caleb explained, his smile widening. “The other way the stars can track us is via our magic, so while we’re blocking yours, I think they won’t know what you’re up to.”
“Why don’t we want them to know what I’m up to?” I breathed, looking around at the magical space and feeling that equilibrium between the four Elements hanging in the air with a shiver of pleasure.
The black walls sparkled with silver mineral deposits and I realised that they’d been placed with care, replicating countless constellations all around us.
Caleb took a step closer to me, capturing my lips with his and making my heart skip a beat as he caught me off guard. I wanted to pull back but for a long moment I didn’t, wondering if I even had any reason to want to stop this. Darius might have been different recently, but it didn’t matter, did it? Even if he managed to pluck a star from the sky for me, I couldn’t be with him now that I’d made my choice. It was all too little too late.
I still pulled back though, looking up at Caleb as he smiled like he’d expected that. “I’m not sure this is a good idea,” I said in a low voice.
“You’re thinking about Darius, aren’t you?” he asked with a weird smile which said he was pleased about that.
“I…” I wanted to deny it but it was true no matter how unfair that was, how pointless. Caleb pushed my hair back over my shoulders and rested his hands on my upper arms as he waited for my answer. “Yes,” I admitted. “I’m always thinking about him.”
“Good.”
I frowned as I tried to figure out why the hell he would think that was a good thing and Caleb ran his hands down from my shoulders until he’d encircled my wrists with his fingers and his grip tightened. He drew my arms behind my back, pressing my wrists together before creating a vine with his earth magic which secured them in place.
“I don’t understand,” I admitted.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time trying to figure something out and I think I might just have cracked it,” he said slowly. “But I’m going to need you to keep trusting me for another few minutes. Can you manage that?”
My pulse quickened as I leaned back to look up at him, my eyes widening with anticipation and a touch of fear as I wondered what the hell he was talking about.
“Okay,” I agreed slowly as I found something reassuring in his gaze. “But why do you want to tie me up?” I asked with a faint smile. The vine was tight enough to hold me in place, but I was fairly sure I’d be able to break it if I really wanted to.
“That’s just the start.” Caleb smirked at me as he reached up to his neck and slowly loosened his tie.
I watched him with my bottom lip between my teeth as he undid the knot and slid it free of his collar. He really was something to look at. Like a Greek Adonis brought to life with his golden hair and chiselled features. And for a moment I wished that I wasn’t so caught up in Darius, that the stars would just release me from this curse and let me consider pursuing something with him instead. Or someone else, anyone else. Why did I have to pine for Darius forevermore as well as knowing that I’d denied myself my one true shot at love?
Caleb walked behind me again and I stayed still as he wound the tie over my eyes, blocking my view of the chamber and only leaving the faint orange glow of the fire lingering at the edges my vision.
“Caleb…” I said slowly, a hint of warning in my voice. I wasn’t sure I liked being so vulnerable with him like this.
My voice echoed slightly against the cavern walls and Caleb stepped away from me, making me feel entirely alone down here beneath the earth and water.
“I promise you’ll like this,” Caleb said, surprising me as his voice came from right beside me instead of behind.
He ran his fingers down the side of my neck for a moment, caressing the spot where my pulse pounded beneath the skin before moving away again.
“If at any point you want us to stop, just say the word,” Caleb murmured in my ear, his lips brushing against the shell.
“Us?” I asked, my heart beating a little faster as I frowned beneath the blindfold.
Caleb’s only reply was a dark chuckle which sent goosebumps rushing along my sensitised skin. Footsteps approached and I stilled, straining my ears to try and figure out what was going on beyond the frantic pounding of my heart.
“Relax, sweetheart,” Caleb whispered, his breath washing over my mouth a second before he ran his finger in a slow line along the length of my nose then brushed my lips in a feather light touch.
Electricity sparked right through to the base of my spine and I inhaled sharply, wondering where the next touch would come from.
The footsteps came to a sudden halt and I caught the sound of someone letting out a breath in surprise before the sound was abruptly cut off.
“Caleb?” I asked, my voice bouncing back to me from the cave walls, but there was no response.
I squirmed a little against the restraints holding my wrists. They were tight enough to keep me still, but I was aching to try and break loose. I almost gave into the temptation to do just that, but I fisted my hands instead. He wanted to put me on the back foot, he was probably half expecting me to bail out of this game already. But I wasn’t going to back out.
I gritted my teeth and waited. A few seconds later, footsteps approached me again and I quickly realised there were two sets of them.
I fidgeted a little more, wondering why he’d brought someone else here and if I was being utterly stupid to put my trust in him like this. He was an Heir. This could easily be some trap. But he’d made that deal with me and so far, I was still fairly confident in my ability to escape my bonds if that was what I wanted. And for some reason, I wanted to find out why he’d chosen to do this to me.
“Sorry, sweetheart,” Caleb murmured in my ear, making me flinch a little at his proximity. “I had to cast a silencing bubble to explain what was going on. I didn’t want to ruin the fun by giving the game away too quickly.”
“I don’t understand,” I began, frowning into the fabric of his tie which still hid the world from me.
“You will,” he promised, his fingertips brushing across my neck and excited energy skittered through me.
“But-” I began just as another hand skimmed along the length of my jaw, a rough thumb teasing a line along my bottom lip and making my skin burn with a desperate need.
My heart pulsed with surprise. That wasn’t Caleb. This hand was rougher, his touch firmer and the heat radiating from his skin sinfully familiar.
I opened my mouth to say something, to make some protest at the idea of the two of them moving around me while I was tied before them like some prize to be won. But before I could align my thoughts into words, Caleb’s cool fingers teased through my hair from behind me, pulling it back over my shoulder.
The second hand traced a line with his fingers down the side of my face, skimming a path along my neck and on until he dragged it across my breast beneath my shirt. My nipple hardened in response, a jolt of energy flooding straight between my thighs as my breath caught.
; I didn’t want to give a name to my suspicions, but goosebumps were erupting all over my skin and a soft moan escaped my lips.
Not knowing where he was or how he might touch me next was making my heart pound like crazy and my breaths came deeper in anticipation of what he’d do.
Caleb’s fingers slid through my hair and trailed down my spine, my back arching as the second guy painted a line with his fingers from my chin to the top button of my shirt.
His fingers plucked at it gently and my breathing hitched as he dropped it again, leaving it in place.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice breathy from the game already. “I don’t know if I want to-”
“Come on, Roxy,” Darius whispered in my ear and a shiver ran down my spine as my guess was proved right. “Show us what you’re made of.”
Before I could reply, his lips brushed against mine and every inch of my body set alight for him. I didn’t have a chance to react at all before he moved away from me again and I was left in the dark and the cold, my skin aching for his touch.
This was a bad idea. I’d made my choice. There was no going back on it. But there was something about us being here, hidden from the world without me even being able to see him, that made me want to forget all that. Just for a moment.
“What do you say, Tory?” Caleb asked, his fingers brushing across my hands where they were still tied at the base of my spine. “I have a theory that with the bangles hiding both of your magic and me thrown into the mix while we hide down here, the stars won’t be able to figure out what we’re doing.”
“And the blindfold?” I asked, my breath catching as I tried to buy myself a moment to process that idea.
“Because it’s hot as fuck,” Caleb said and Darius growled like he agreed with that.
I bit my lip, wondering if this was insanity just as Darius ran his fingers down the side of my neck, making me shiver with need.
“So, do you want to play?” Caleb asked, his voice sounding from my right.
My heart pumped harder, my breaths coming deep and heavy as I considered what they were offering me. It seemed crazy. After everything that had happened between us, especially me and Darius, I should have been screaming at them to get the hell away from me. But maybe I was a glutton for punishment or maybe I was addicted to the darkness because if there was even the slightest chance that I could have him, then I wanted it. My lips parted, my heart thumped solidly in my chest and a single word left my lips.
“Yes.”
A kiss captured my mouth and I stumbled forward a step, recognising Caleb as his hand caught my jaw and he turned my head to the right so that he could reach me better.
Darius growled like he didn’t like that and his mouth landed on my neck, his stubble grazing my skin and I moaned as the two of them caged me in with their muscular bodies.
A hand slid to my top button, and my heart thundered adrenaline through my body as I realised I couldn’t tell whose it was. Another hand made it to my bottom button and started working up my shirt to meet the first.
Caleb’s tongue slid over mine and his grip on my face tightened as he stepped around me, turning my head to maintain our kiss as he moved to stand against my back, kissing me over my shoulder.
His body pressed against mine and I pushed my ass back, feeling the hard length of his arousal driving against me through the barrier of our clothes. My hands were still pinned in place at the base of my spine but I flexed my fingers, rubbing them along the length of him and drawing a groan from his lips as he broke our kiss.
I turned my head forward just as the final button of my shirt was released and the cool air of the chamber washed over my exposed skin.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Roxy,” Darius growled from somewhere just out of reach in front of me, watching me while I couldn’t see him.
Goosebumps speckled my skin as Caleb’s hands slid around my waist, his mouth coming down on my neck.
His fangs brushed against my flesh and a gasp escaped me, my back arching in anticipation of what I knew he was about to do.
He bit down and I cried out at the sharp slice of his teeth but Darius’s lips landed on mine a second later, filling me with heat and devouring my pain. I melted against him, my heart hammering a wild tune as the heat of him slid through every inch of my body.
His hands skimmed up my ribs until they found my breasts over my pink bra and a groan of longing escaped him as my nipples hardened at his touch.
The ground wasn’t trembling, there was no sound of thunder, nothing to suggest the stars knew what we were doing and the thought of that was a thrill in itself.
My gut clenched as Darius’s kiss deepened and I gave myself to him, knowing that I shouldn’t, that this decision had already been made. But with his hands on my body and his mouth against mine it was hard to remember why. Everything about him felt so right when he was touching me, his heart beating close to mine...
An echo of pain raced through my chest at the idea of what he could have been to me. What he should have been. If everything had been different.
I kissed him with a desperate need to stifle that pain. I could taste the same desire on his tongue, that ache to make this more than just a stolen moment, to undo all of the things that had put us here and force the stars to change our fates.
Caleb withdrew his fangs from my neck and swept a thumb over the sore skin as he healed the wound away but I could barely feel it anymore, lost to the sensation of Darius’s mouth against mine.
One of Darius’s hands slid into my hair and my soul ached for him, my heart longing to be his in a way that wasn’t possible. I drew back from the pain of his closeness, pushing my ass back against Caleb as I broke my kiss with him.
Darius let out a low growl, letting his own pain show as he acknowledged what I’d done, but I had to do it. I could take this pleasure from him but I had to keep my heart blocked off. I’d made my choice. I couldn’t forgive what he’d done to me and my pupils were ringed with black to prove it.
I flexed my fingers along Caleb’s dick again, tipping my head back to give him more access to me as Darius began to trail kisses down my throat, over my collar bone and on to my breast.
He dragged my bra aside as his mouth closed on my nipple and a moan escaped me as Caleb’s hand found my other breast at the same time.
The two of them tugged and teased me, my breathing growing heavier as the combination of the two sensations sent my body wild.
Darius released my nipple and shifted lower before me, the sound of his knees hitting the stone floor reaching my ears as his mouth moved over my stomach.
My breath caught as he hooked his fingers into the waistband of my skirt. He dragged it down achingly slowly, his rough palms teasing across my thighs as he tugged it lower.
It dropped down to my ankles and I stepped out of it, leaving me before them in my stockings, stilettos, underwear and open shirt. I was aware that their clothes were still on even though with the blindfold and my hands restrained it didn’t make much difference, but my heart beat a little faster at the knowledge that I was so exposed while they weren’t.
I shifted my bound hands higher behind my back, awkwardly managing to hook my fingers through the loop in Caleb’s belt and drawing a dark laugh from him as he moved away from me before I could do any more.
“Impatient little thing, aren’t you?” Caleb teased, breathing against my ear before biting my earlobe playfully.
“Take your clothes off,” I insisted breathlessly and the two of them laughed at my demanding tone, though Darius’s grip on me tightened like he wanted to drag me away from Caleb and claim me for his own. I knew this wasn’t natural for him, he wasn’t programmed to share like this but he was clearly willing to push against his instincts for this chance to be with me and my heart beat harder just thinking of that.
Darius caught my left ankle in his grip, tugging gently until I shifted my weight onto my right foot and let him lift it from the ground. His fingers pres
sed against my calf through the fabric of my stocking as he slowly slid his hands higher, lifting my leg and forcing me to bend it.
His mouth landed against the inside of my knee through the silky material of my stocking and he began to carve a trail of kisses up the inside of my thigh, sending an ache of need right through me as he drew closer to exactly where I wanted him to be.
Caleb pulled me back against him more firmly, balancing me as Darius hooked my leg over his shoulder. Caleb’s hand continued to toy with my breast, his mouth skimming down my neck as Darius passed the top of my stocking and my pulse thundered as his lips pressed down on bare flesh.
Darius’s mouth fell on me over the barrier of my lace panties and a moan escaped my lips as I shifted my hips against him. His stubble grazed the sensitive skin at the tops of my thighs and his hands moved to grip my ass and hold me exactly where he wanted me.
His mouth closed over me, his teeth dragging against the thin material and sending a spike of pleasure through my body so intense that my knees almost buckled.
“Fuck,” I breathed, tipping my head back against Caleb’s shoulder as his mouth moved across my jaw.
I could feel him smiling against my skin as he watched me fall apart under Darius’s movements.
Darius continued to toy with me over my panties and I strained against the vine binding my wrists, wanting more, needing to touch them properly too.
Caleb slid his other hand down my side, hooked his fingers through the edge of my panties and a flash of heat flared along my skin as he used his fire magic to destroy them.
I gasped in surprise as Darius pressed forward instantly, dragging his tongue straight up the centre of me and sending heat tearing right through my core. I swore again, leaning more of my weight against Caleb as his grip on me tightened to keep me in place, his fingers digging into my hip almost painfully.
Darius moved faster, licking, circling and even biting me a little as he sent my body wild. I was panting in Caleb’s arms, the darkness beneath the blindfold meaning my whole world was centred in on the movements of Darius’s mouth between my thighs and I was sure I’d never felt anything so intensely before in my life.
Zodiac Academy 5: Cursed Fates: An Academy Bully Romance (Supernatural Bullies and Beasts) Page 41