The air thickened, similar to the onset of a storm. Here with her, he wasn’t the son of Kylock Sr., he wasn’t an arrogant prat and he most definitely wasn’t a gentleman. Blazes, he wanted to taste her with a need that grew stronger by the second. Her mouth shut and her shoulders tensed as if she were preparing to move. Even so, her gaze gleamed with curiosity and wonder as those lashes fluttered and she looked at him.
Damn it all.
Silas leaned in, weaving his fingers through her hair while he closed the space between them. Her breath hitched, the air hot on his lips. The fevered look in her eyes provided the only motivation he needed. Curling those velvet strands into his grip, he pressed his mouth to hers.
God, the taste of her. She was honeyed sweetness and the sharpness of licorice from the absinthe in one gasp. The moment their lips connected, he’d passed the point of no return. Despite the pride and distance she’d wielded like weapons in the past, when he gripped her waist, she melted into his embrace as though she’d belonged there the whole time. She kissed back with a surprising ferocity, their mouths meeting again and again.
Her tongue slipped out as she explored the seam of his lips, and he responded in turn. Despite the slight chill in the air, he burned for her with the intensity of an inferno. His clothes felt too heavy, too cumbersome, and his skin heated with the way she clutched him. Her body pressed against his like a lost gear clicked into place. Each taste of her stoked his desire further, until they’d stumbled against the tenement wall.
She moaned when he pressed her against the bricks, the sound traveling straight to his cock. He wanted to do away with the layers between them and needed to feel her skin on his, a sensation that had become more addictive than opium. As they crashed together, the rest of the world was drowned out until the only things existing were her velvet curls in his fist, the smooth-as-whiskey skin of her throat and more soft skin he longed to bite and suck. The moans she made and the way her pert breasts pressed against his chest made him delirious with lust.
Theo was as real as she’d ever been, but unlike the restrained, controlled woman he’d known for some time, in his arms she became a wanton, wild thing.
If he didn’t have to worry about a knife to his throat in this edge of town, he would have taken her here against the wall and indulged in the passion that skated every interaction between them. He fumbled to flick the top buttons of his shirt open, and the way her nails dug into his skin made him sweat. She was everything he’d wanted for so long and had never realized he was missing.
Their kisses grew frantic, and both Silas and Theo gasped for air before diving in for more, as if they needed to seize these precious moments while they lasted. She slid her thigh against his, and he slipped his hand down her waist along the curve of her hip. She bit his lower lip, making him grow harder in an instant. He pressed against her body, desperate to bury himself inside her.
“Oi, what are the two of you doing necking out here?” a rough, deep voice called from nearby. Silas’ hands went from her hips to his knife. However, Theo was faster on the quick draw, her Derringer pulled and pointed before he could turn to catch a glimpse of their intruder.
An old man with thousands of wrinkles stepped out on the landing in the sparse light of the main entrance. The embers of his newly burning cigar emanated a neon glow. “Dickens, lass, I didn’t expect you out here,” he said, squinting as he took them in. “You know it’s not safe for any of that nonsense. Find yourself a room.”
Theo lowered her pistol and plunked it into her holster. A heavy blush stained her cheeks. Silas stared at the man, trying to figure out the face when he realized it was Ol’ Man Sal who had lived three doors down from them.
“Long time no see, Sal,” Silas said with a grin.
He couldn’t deny that a small portion of himself reveled in Theo’s sudden embarrassment, that the ever-responsible one would let herself go for a half-minute. Her cheeks had a ruddy flush to them, and she finger-combed her hair to smooth the wild strands. Still, she couldn’t hide the swell of her lips or the heady glitter in her eyes. Even with the sudden jolt, Silas hadn’t quite dismissed his arousal, and he adjusted the belt of his trousers to keep certain things from sight.
The old man’s eyebrows lifted, crinkling his face. “Theo Whitfield out here with Silas Kylock? I never thought I’d see the day.” He let out a puff from his cigar, the smoke pouring out of his mouth in a steady stream. “Isn’t this a far stretch from your fancy new locale?”
Silas tugged off his cap and ran a hand through his hair. “You can take the man out of Islington, but you can’t take Islington out of the man.”
Sal chortled, his shoulders shaking.
“If you two are done having a laugh?” Theo said, composed enough to speak up. She’d regained her poise and even cocked an eyebrow in his direction. The sight of her could inspire lust on command.
Silas’ lips curled into a smirk. “I’ll take my cue, before this one smashes my heart on the floor. She’s a cruel woman, Sal.”
“Look slippery, darling,” she said, offering a devious smile in return. “We’ve got work to do in the morning.” At that, Theo sauntered into her building without a glance back, leaving Silas and Sal outside in the cold.
Sal ashed the tip of his cigar, the flakes floating to the cobblestones. “Helluva woman, isn’t she?”
“That she is.” Silas slipped his hands in his pockets while he prepared for the trek home. “See you around, Sal.” Even as he took the first steps away from the tenement, the tug to go back pulled at him. Despite his attempts at distance through the years, with her in his system, he wondered how he’d ever be able to extricate himself. One thing was sure—Theo Whitfield was the sort of woman to brand him for a lifetime.
Chapter Seven
What a difference a day makes.
Theo’s heart sped when she neared the Kylock Industries building. She was unable to shake the memories of last night, from the strength of him as he’d pressed her against the building to the silent thrill that roared through her every time their lips crashed. She’d wanted more in a way she hadn’t experienced in far too long. Selfish desires consumed her, leaving her feeling guilty with all the turmoil disrupting her home.
The polished bronze sign of Kylock Industries glared down at her, though this time she failed to associate it with the Silas she’d rediscovered, the one she remembered from her youth. She gripped the knob and pushed the door open. Upon her entry, the tang of metals and the scent of leather and wood oil from the plush mahogany furniture arranged around the back section of the parlor greeted her.
The same attendant sat behind the front-facing desk, and on sight of Theo, didn’t bother arguing, just nodded to the hallway on the opposite side and continued with her work. Whatever fear this woman might have of Kylock Sr., a technomancer’s power trumped it.
Theo made her way down the corridor in the direction of the workroom, this time on her own. With this important task on her hands, she’d needed to convince herself to stop by and not head off on her own to handle the problem. Silas held an investment in Ellie’s disappearance, since her darling sister had absconded with his diamond core. And if she were honest with herself, she wanted to see him again after everything that unfolded between them yesterday.
Voices sounded from behind the massive workroom doors at the end of the hall. Theo slowed at the sound and listened before resting her fingers on the door.
A deep voice who wasn’t Silas came from inside. “—and I hear word you were making appearances at the Bell Tavern and the tenements? Have you given a whit of consideration as to how that reflects upon this business? No son of mine will have associations with the mongrels and miscreants who reside there.”
Theo’s chest ached at the man’s statements, anger roaring through a moment later. Her fingers curled against the surface of the door.
“Ah, you mean the very mongrels and miscreants we came from? What does it matter to you where I go if I’m continui
ng to tinker for you and create new products?” Silas argued, bitterness in his voice.
“You’re a representative of this family,” the older man shot back. “If you’re associating with muck, you’ll get dragged into it and I forbid the stain upon our family name.”
Theo clenched her jaw, bristling with annoyance while she knocked. Now seemed as good a time as any for the riffraff to make an appearance. After hearing a mere fraction of their conversation, she understood the detestation Silas had for his father. Hers might have abandoned them early, but a man as concerned with appearances as Kylock Sr. wasn’t worth having around, either.
The door swung open, and the older man stepped into view. He stood with the height and sneer of the gentry, but despite his wrinkles and graying hair, she noted the similar thick eyebrows and angular jaw to Silas’, along with chestnut eyes that were a touch too sharpened by knowledge. The similarities ended there. Silas’ father dripped with haughtiness, and the hatred in his gaze as he stared at her was all too real.
“What are you doing here in our offices? No one sent for a technomancer.” His tone was dismissive, and she caught the twitch of his hand as if he were preparing to shut the door in her face.
“I did,” Silas said, maneuvering past his father. “I’ve some business to attend to on one of our latest projects, so the lectures on my lack of propriety can wait.” Theo didn’t miss the dirty looks they exchanged in the process. Before his father put up a protest, Silas shoved past him to shut the door behind him. “Hurry,” he said, shooting her an irritated glance. “Before the old man decides to keep wasting precious oxygen with his words.”
As they strode through the parlor, the attendant glanced up for a moment. However, instead of raising an argument, the woman kept typing away at the stack of papers in front of her. She didn’t say a word while they made their way to the door, even though her lip curled in clear disgust. Theo couldn’t resist giving a wave to flash the conductor ring on her finger as the woman snuck another peek. The attendant bit her lip, returning to her paperwork with a furious zeal. The door slammed from the back room, echoing all the way to the front of Kylock Industries. Silas’ father might be storming about the place in a huff over next to nothing, but they didn’t have time to waste on his trivialities. Theo would find her sister today, and she wouldn’t rest until Ellie returned to their flat, safe.
The moment they stepped out into the sunshine of a beautiful day, Theo couldn’t help but notice the way the beams brought out the ruby and amber in Silas’ hair. They highlighted the slight hook of his nose and the scruff around his chin from neglecting to shave. This close, she caught the scent of earth and amber, the same that had dosed her with such intense desire the night before.
“My apologies that you had to deal with that infernal man for even a moment,” Silas muttered, running a hand through his hair. “He’s an absolute bear before his morning cuppa. Or about any other time of day.”
Theo snorted. After witnessing a hint of their interactions, she had a much clearer picture of why Silas had excised everything from his past once the Kylocks had come into money. For him, there had never been another option.
“With a father like that, I can’t imagine how you haven’t dug a grave in eager preparation. I’d have slit his throat by breakfast.” Theo took the lead down the cobbled streets to the western reaches of town, the autocarts clattering past them.
This early, businessmen in black suits rushed by, their briefcases slapping the sides of their thighs. Silas moved fast and silent beside her, but she didn’t miss the glances he stole and the way his eyes blazed, as though he was remembering last night.
She couldn’t ignore the heat welling in her chest or the way adrenaline crashed through her. Sure, she was as tense as a taut wire over their approach to the warehouses and the search for her sister, but if danger presented itself, she had a Derringer to solve the problem. As far as the trouble known as Silas Kylock went? Theo possessed no defenses against him.
She rolled the conductor ring around her finger. Whenever she spent an extended period without using much of her magic, she would get an itch under her skin, one of the things that always kept her in the field.
Silas glanced to her. “Restless?”
She nodded, kicking a pebble while they walked. “The urge drives me until I find something to work on, to pour my magic into.”
He nodded, understanding in the quirk of his lips and the warmth in those brown eyes. “Why do you think I haven’t left my father yet? The ideas will hit me at any hour of the day and I’m driven to work. A tinker without tools is a miserable thing to behold. I’ve always balanced the scales of my father’s wishes with the joy I get working with the metals and mechanisms in the shop.”
Theo bit her lip, wishing she could offer some solace or advice. Just as she was tethered to the streets of Islington due to her mother’s poor health, he was likewise trapped in his gilded cage, no matter how much he might miss running around with her and the others like he used to. They passed one bricked building after another, the industrial warehouses on this side of town pouring oily smoke into the air. The hiss of steam from grates created clouds that rolled through the streets.
The businessmen filtered away the closer they got to the district, while poorer workers, doffing caps and having donned suspenders over their threadbare shirts, made their way inside the buildings for yet another day of work. The shift bell would ring, and out would pour the workers in mass quantities as another cycle of them stepped inside to begin their time manning the machines. Men and women wearing dulled expressions entered and left on the daily. Theo resisted a shudder. If she hadn’t been born with her abilities, she would’ve been in line with the rest of them.
The Technomancers’ Guild building rose in the distance, beautiful architecture with arches and gargoyles carved into the peaks overlooking the city. The thick, tinted glass kept the goings-on inside private, because they had plenty of secrets to keep. As one privy to what was discussed at the meetings, she knew for certain they withheld quite a few details from King and Parliament.
Amidst all the warehouses, Remington’s small storefront sat beside their large facility. They shipped and transported automatons of every shape and size, so the idea of Ellie taking the diamond core there didn’t appear far-fetched. When Theo found her sister, she would strangle her for the days of worry she’d put their family through. She refused to accept the alternative.
“Are you ready to retrieve Ellie?” Silas broke the silence while they strode closer and closer to the chestnut frame and pale green awning of Remington’s. “I’m sure you’ll have her swearing off her life of crime and villainy.”
Theo allowed herself a smile. “I can try. Since I was the only one of us born with a technomancer’s abilities, Ellie’s outlook is bleaker. She’s got the choices of marrying off, joining the hustle of bone-breaking work in the warehouses or the path she’s traveling—to swindle the wealthy and run with the lurkers and cracksmen of the town. Only one of those options gives her any sort of control, any power.”
The truth of their situation prickled her skin, a reminder of the responsibility she owed her mother and Ellie due to circumstances of her birth. A reminder that flirtations with Silas Kylock, as fleeting and enjoyable as they might be, didn’t hold any stake in her future. He could never pursue something lasting with someone of her status, and she didn’t have time to waste as someone’s diversion.
Silas’ fingers glided across her cheek, ensnaring her attention. The gentle touch and the sympathy in his eyes was something she’d never expected, yet her body tuned to the sensation like she’d been powered on.
“Just because you were born with your magic doesn’t mean you’re obliged to sacrifice your own happiness for the sake of your family’s,” he murmured when they stopped several stores down from Remington’s.
Despite the people bustling through these streets around them, Silas had a way of making her feel as though it was only the t
wo of them in a forest of fools. Her heart sped at the tender look in his dark eyes, as if he saw past the tough shell to the core she kept buried. Deep beneath lay the dreams she’d strangled and the desires she’d snuffed out.
Theo lifted her chin, matching his stare. “The same could be said of you, Kylock. No matter what power or money your father lords over you, he will never own your brilliant mind. He’ll never own you.”
Silas’ Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, hard. Steam billowed through the air from the nearby vents. The condensation painted her skin, but nothing grew as thick or tense as the loaded silence between her and Silas. Somehow, in uncovering each other’s truths, they’d reached the point of no return. They could no longer hide behind the false masks they paraded in front of the rest of the world.
Silas trailed his fingers down her neck before retracting his hand and balling it into a fist. She shivered in the wake of his touch, the memories of being in his arms last night far too near. Right now, they had a job to do, and she didn’t need any more distractions. Theo ran a hand through her tangled strands of hair when she stepped past him, quickening her pace along the sidewalk toward Remington’s.
The gilt lettering of the storefront stood out, carved into the wooden sign suspended in the front. Automatons moved back and forth in the display window, the sight slowing the steps of every passerby. Small parrots made of cogs, brassy bits and welded sheet metal sat on stands in the windows, cocking their heads to the side or flapping their wings. As a technomancer, she could animate at least a dozen of those tiny creatures in unison while barely breaking a sweat—hence why she made such a good handyman. Due to her magic’s connection with the mechanism, she pinpointed and repaired issues without needing to disassemble the creation.
Silas stepped past her to open the door. When Theo entered, cool gusts of air wafted her way from the aether-powered fans set to counteract the elevated heat caused by so many automatons in motion. This place could be a museum with the number of creatures and creations lining the shelves, all in a variety of brass, copper and bronze. The metallic scents in the air tickled her nose enough that she pinched the tip to keep from sneezing.
Of Tinkers and Technomancers Page 6