Aurora’s Betrayal

by K. A Knight

  Darius, she cries in my head, and my heart stutters.

  It’s like her voice is a bright, blinding light chasing the shadows away until I can see clearly for a moment. But I know it will overtake me again, the hate only held at bay for now, and it terrifies me.

  Then I will be your light, always, she vows, and I choke on a laugh.

  You can’t.

  She snorts. You want to fucking bet?

  Her lips cover mine again, and my eyes shoot open to focus on her.

  Shut your eyes. That’s creepy. She laughs in my head.

  I grunt before dragging her close and closing my eyes, sweeping into her mouth to taste her.

  Her hands stay on my face where I drew them, and I wrap her up in my arms, finding solace there as she storms through my mind, fighting away the darkness as she twines with me.

  I don’t try to take it any further. I’m happy to have her in my arms and her lips on me.

  She pulls back and lays her forehead back on mine, our eyes locked on each other and filled with lust and unspoken things. I can still feel her in my mind; not as strong as before, but more like she left open the link between us. I catch whispers of her thoughts every now and again—a buzz unless I want to hear them. But the best thing? I can think clearly. Like she flicked on the light and chased off the darkness.

  It’s still there, but not consuming me.

  “What did you do?” I gasp, and I don’t know whether it’s in my head and hers or out loud.

  “Saved you, princess. You can thank me now.” She laughs, and I join in, the sound choked and harsh but still there.

  “Thank you, princess. I can think of other ways to make it up to you,” I snark.

  “I bet you can, but you forget: I’m in your head. I’ve seen your… thoughts about me.”

  I grin, not the least bit ashamed, but it dims and I look at the floor. “Will this last?”

  I hate the quiver in my voice.

  “Yes. I won’t shut you out, not again. We’ll need to set some rules, but I think with the connection open, you can drain some of my… light and stop it from growing. It won’t reverse what’s already there, and you might have moments, but essentially, yes.”

  “You won’t shut me out?” I need the reassurance even as mocking laughter sounds from the darkness in my head.

  She wipes it all away with a soft kiss on my lips. “Never.”

  I let out the breath I held. “Let’s get back. I bet that prick is here already.”

  She nods and follows after me, her hand wound through mine.

  His ass looks really good in those pants.

  Smirking, I don’t tease her, even if I want to.

  46

  Aurora

  Darius leads me through the mass of people on the dance floor with a new skip in his step. When I saw inside his mind… Gods. I don’t know how he’s been functioning.

  No wonder he’s been such a prick.

  It was like darkness covered everything, sucking out any hint of light, love, or laughter until all that remained was hate, jealousy, and greed. It must be the leftover Perses warned me about. It twisted Darius’s mind and heart, but behind it I sensed him. The real him. The man he was before he died. He’s still the same man but with more fear and pain. The darkness remains inside him, and no doubt it will suck him in again, but I’ll be there to fight it by his side this time.

  He looks over his shoulder and smiles softly at me, obviously reading my thoughts.

  Strangely enough, I don’t mind. I love this connection we share even when he’s a massive twat. His voice in my head, even the constant nicknames.

  Looks like your little human found some friends. Guess you two are more alike than you thought.

  Following Darius’s eyes, I spot Lane dancing with three men. They’re all tall and well-built from what I can see, but I can’t make out many details; the lights blind me and the people between us block a good view.

  What I can make out is her smile. She looks happy, so I grin and follow after Darius. Let’s hope she finally gets some. It might keep her occupied while we meet with this man of Alex’s, anyway.

  When we reach the table, everyone else is already there. I slip in next to Darius and it doesn’t go unnoticed.

  I ignore the looks and stare at Alex. “Is he not here yet?”

  “No, but we need to cover some ground rules first. Don’t tell him who or what you are. Leave him guessing. Let us do the talking and try not to draw too much attention to yourself. I’m serious, Aurora; this man is dangerous. He sells people out faster than you can blink. You need to be unmemorable.” Alex stares me down, worry in his eyes.

  Not wanting to show how much he freaked me out, I nod and swallow hard. I’ll do what he says.

  Alex pushes a new drink across to me, and I accept it gratefully, spinning the glass with my hands.

  They all sit up straighter.

  “He’s here,” Ezra growls, and I follow all their eyes to a man striding our way.

  He grabs a chair from the table next to us, swings it around, and sits backward on it, his head propped on the back of it as he takes us all in.

  His eyes linger on me for a bit too long, but when he looks at Darius, he freezes. “Well, holy fuck. The prodigal witch returns.”

  Darius nods and Alex draws his attention by clearing his throat. “You wanted to meet?”

  “Yes. Let me get a drink, won’t you, my boy?” He waves over a waitress.

  Alex grits his teeth, his fingers squeezing around his drink. He really doesn’t like this guy.

  Once the waitress walks away, the man turns back to us, his face falling from his shark-like smile to serious.

  The change makes me sit back further against Darius, whose eyes look dead.

  “I found the dream walker as requested, and now I need repayment.” He watches me until Alex draws his attention back to him.

  “We no longer need the dream walker,” Ezra growls.

  “Tough shit, hunter. You asked, I found. You’re fucking paying. That’s how it works.” The man smashes his fist onto the table, and I jump. “Now, I’m betting the sudden need for a dream walker has something to do with the woman next to your dead man? I won’t pass along this information, of course, but you’ll pay.”

  He leaves the or else implied, and I almost hear the cogs in Alex’s head turning. Wait, what did he mean hunter?

  I ask Darius in my head, but he ignores it.

  “What do you want?” Mikael pipes up, and the shark smile appears back on the man’s face.

  He sits back as the waitress returns and places a drink in front of him. He waits until she disappears before he replies. “There are a few human men I need you to… locate for me. I know they’re in London; I just don’t know where. So, do what you do best and hunt them.”

  I feel all the guys throwing looks at me, and when I go to open my mouth to ask what the man means, Darius snaps his hand over my mouth.

  Turning, I glare at him, but he ignores me.

  “What makes these humans so special?” Jason sits still under the man’s probing gaze.

  “None of your fucking business. You’ll know them instantly. We’ve put a calling mark on them.”

  A few breaths suck in as I swivel my gaze around, trying to figure what the fuck’s going on.

  “We find them and bring them to you, I’m guessing?” Alex drawls, leaning back in his chair.

  “Yep. Message me when you have them, and we’ll meet.” The man winks at me, and I narrow my eyes. He throws back his drink. “Do we have a deal?”

  Alex glances at me and sighs. “Yes.”

  “Good. Once you have the men, I’ll give you the dream walker.” He starts to stand and Ezra shoots to his feet.

  “That wasn’t the fucking deal, snake,” he growls, and the man freezes.

  As he turns back to the table, I gasp into Darius’s hand. The man’s eyes have gone yellow, slitted and with a tiny pupil.

  Something shifts
beneath his skin, almost shining under the lights before he hisses out, “That is the deal, hunter. Accept or I will find out why you’re so keen to keep the little witch hidden.”

  Alex stands, pushing Ezra down. “I said deal. Now, get the fuck out of here.”

  The man’s eyes turn back to normal and he tips his hat before grinning over at me. “Nice to meet you, witch. Strange group you’ve taken up with. If you ever get bored, you can find me. You know how.”

  With a wink, he disappears into the crowd.

  Slowly, everyone relaxes, but a bit of tension still rolls off them. Something that man said shook them. I just don’t know what.

  If you don’t remove your hand, I’m going to bite it and then fireball your penis.

  Darius laughs in my head and drops his hand.

  Licking my lips, I throw him a glare before looking back at Alex. “What did he mean hunter? And how does he know you?”

  Alex sighs, rubbing his head. I instantly feel bad.

  “I’ll tell you, kitten, I promise. But can we enjoy the rest of our night?” He looks so forlorn I find myself nodding.

  Some life comes back into Alex’s eyes. “Want to dance, kitten?”

  Downing the drink, I nod.

  He slips out and wraps an arm about my waist, steering me from the table, but my mind runs a hundred miles a minute. I guess I’ve been trying to ignore everything else Perses told me, and the fact they’re witches. With it pushed into my face tonight, I realize I know nothing of how their world works and I need to—fast.

  I can’t forget my promise to Perses. It’s been nice taking a break and recovering after everything, but after tonight, I need to get serious. We need to talk, and we need to come up with a plan for what we know about my future.

  “Tonight, kitten. Keep your head focused on just tonight, not tomorrow, not a week from now. Tonight,” Alex murmurs and pulls my body to his.

  Standing on the edge of the dance floor, he gazes down at me, and I lose myself in his amber eyes.

  “Tonight,” I promise, but silently I add that tomorrow they will have to face what they so clearly don’t want to.

  Why were they here in the first place? Why was Mikael hunting me? Why are they a coven? Why do they exist outside of the secretive world of witches?

  Who are they?

  47

  Alexander

  Questions swirl in Aurora’s eyes as she looks at me and silently worries at her bottom lip. I push down everything and concentrate on her. I knew the day would come when we would have to tell her everything, but I’ve held back. I’ve witnessed her anger firsthand, and she finds it hard enough to trust—only now just letting us in.

  This might break that, and it terrifies me. Not for me, but I see the way my brothers watch her. They’re gone. If she leaves, she’ll break their hearts, and that will be on my shoulders.

  They pleaded with me to tell her, but I worried about her past and her motives, not wanting to trust a rogue witch. Then, we were in too deep. With every day and every minute I didn’t tell her, the weight grew in my stomach. I can’t bear the thought of her hating me, of that softness and smile she gives me turning into a scowl. Of not being able to touch her ever again… Maybe that was why I held myself back, knowing then, at least, I might be able to protect myself a little.

  Groaning, I push it all away. It’s all tomorrow’s problems. Tonight, tonight I will let myself indulge in case this is the last time she lets me hold her. My hand lifts to grab her bottom lip, and she lets it go from between her teeth. As my finger runs over it, I watch her eyes flare.

  Dropping my hand before I do something stupid like throw her over my shoulder and carry her out of here, I drop my hands to her ass and pull her tight until no space exists between our bodies.

  Her hands land on my chest as we dance, and the music guides us as she winds her hips. I watched her dance earlier and it had me harder than a rock as I imaged her touching me, moving against me like that.

  Usually, I control my need and don’t push, but I’m throwing everything out the window tonight, so why not?

  Ezra moves through the crowd, the throng parting for the big bastard, his eyes already on her.

  He grabs her hips and pulls until she falls back into him. Watching me, he bends down and licks her neck before dipping her.

  I push back against her front and grab her waist, winding with them. All of us move in sync, the beating of our hearts as loud as the music. With each press of her tits to my chest, it drives my need wilder until I can barely breathe or see.

  My eyes drop to her lips again. I know they’ve all kissed her. Even Darius. It seems only right I’m the last one, but I promised her I wouldn’t until she admitted how she felt about it.

  She must see the hesitation in my face because she spins, pushing that perky ass up to my cock and leaning on her toes toward Ezra. He dips his head and kisses her. His hand tunnels into her hair, and he holds her to him as he licks and nips at her lips before pushing inside.

  I shouldn’t be able to over the music, but I hear her quiet gasps and moans as her ass pushing back into my hard cock. Grinding my jaw, I wind my hand in her hair and pull her away from Ezra. He lets go as I twist her head to face me.

  Triumph enters Ezra’s eyes. He knew I would cave.

  Her eyes are unfocused and filled with need. Her lipstick is smudged and her breasts heave as she rubs against us both. She’s never looked so beautiful. My head drips to touch my lips to hers, and I’m lost.

  Muttering, I tighten my grip, yank her closer, and she gasps in pain. I swallow the sound, pushing my tongue in and dominating her mouth, setting a punishing pace until our lips fight and our teeth clash with the force of the kiss.

  She moans into my mouth, and when I lift my head, I see Ezra kissing down her neck and chest. He locks eyes with me and grins. We’re both clearly thinking the same thing.

  We don’t share, not really, but with her…

  But first, she’s mine.

  He must read that because he nods, dropping a kiss on her chest, over her heart, before he steps back. She turns her head to watch him go, but using her hair and waist, I spin her back to me, kissing her hard.

  She grips me, her hand diving into my shirt to try and find skin, and when she makes contact and strokes, I shiver. If I don’t get her out of here soon, I’m going to bend her over right here and now.

  “Can you stop tonguing each other to death for one second?” comes a shout.

  I roll my eyes, and pulling away, I drop a kiss on her lips before looking at Lane.

  “What happened to your… friends?” I grin, and her face flames.

  “Nothing. Look, I need to head home. I have an early meeting.” She shuffles, and I sigh.

  We aren’t letting her go home alone.

  Entwining my hand with kitten’s, I smile at her. “Come on, kitten, time to go.”

  Her eyes flare and I smirk.

  Leaning down, I whisper in the shell of her ear, “Then you’re mine for the night.”

  She grips onto my hand tighter and grins, then reaches down to right her dress. She rubs my cock, and I narrow my eyes, knowing she did it on purpose.

  With a wink, she follows Lane, pulling me from the dance floor as I laugh.

  When we get back to the table, I almost groan.

  Oh, this should be good. Stupid bastards.

  A woman sticks to Jason’s side as he tries to shuffle away, his eyes focused anywhere but on the obvious nipples through her see-through shirt. Another leans on Mikael, and yet another woman on Ben. He actually has an arm across the table, blocking her from being on his lap. One sits near Darius, but he glares at her and she looks like she doesn’t know what to do. Ezra stands there growling, but to be fair, all the men appear uncomfortable, like the girls came over, sat down, and started flirting on their own.

  Women complain about men being handsy and forward, but women can be just as bad.

  I storm up there, ready to make them ta
ke a hike so Aurora doesn’t get upset, but she lets go of my hand and struts to the table like she owns the joint. I watch her ass move as she walks and bite my knuckle to hold back.

  This should be interesting.

  Stepping up next to her, I watch as she leans over the table between Mikael and Jason, whose shoulders press together at this point to avoid the handsy women. Aurora locks eyes with the woman near Mikael and drops a kiss on his lips before turning her head. Glaring at the other woman, she kisses Jason, too. His eyes widen in shock as he watches her, and I laugh.

  Her hands spread on the table, and with every eye on her, she throws back her hair and runs her eyes up and down the girls. “Now, I don’t blame you. I really don’t, but I am a possessive mother fucker. My daddy always said I didn’t know how to share, so you better get your hands off my men before I decide to break them off and shove them through your enhanced lips. Understood?” She purrs, and the women gulp while glancing at each other.

  The one next to Ben pipes up. “You can’t have all of them, you greedy slut.”

  She didn’t just fucking—

  All the guys bristle, but Aurora holds her hand up, stopping us. “Now listen here, cupcake. I can have them all, and I do, but your green monster isn’t fucking attractive, and we both know I’m not the slut. I mean really, your legs are spread so wide I can see your pussy hanging out. Desperate isn’t a good look, sweetie.”

  I choke back my laugh.

  “Now, get the fuck away from my men. Last warning,” Aurora growls, her power running through her and touching all of us until we gasp and shudder. It feels like she stroked the whole way down the front of my body.

  With a huff, the women slide from the booth, and Aurora straightens and turns back to us.

  “Fucking cheap slut,” one of them spits, and before Aurora can spin around, Lane steps up and throws her drink in the girl’s face.

  We all stare at the human as the girl screams and rubs at her now ruined dress.