Claimed by Shadows (Kissed by Shadows Series, Book 3)

by Lola StVil

  I have no idea what to say. I don’t know how to make any of this right again.

  “You know what? I need a drink. That might fill the hole inside of me at least,” he says.

  I get to my feet and stand in front of him, so he has to stop pacing. Because suddenly, I know what he needs to hear. It’s not alcohol he needs. It’s me.

  “You don’t need a drink, Kane. You need me. Let me be there for you,” I whisper.

  “I…” he starts.

  I lean up and brush his lips against mine.

  “No talking,” I say. “Take me to your place.”

  MATURE CONTENT AHEAD.

  YOUNGER READERS CAN SKIP TO NEXT CHP.

  Kane does as I ask, and we enter his living room. I don’t talk to him; there’s nothing more to say. Instead, I take him by the hand and lead him to the bedroom. He allows himself to be led.

  I stop when we’re next to his bed, and I turn back and look him in the eye. I peel my shirt off and reach around my back and unhook my bra. Without my eyes leaving his, I kick off my shoes and unbutton my jeans. I push them down, my panties still inside them, and slip them off. And as I stand before him naked and vulnerable, I say the only words he needs to hear.

  “Make love to me, Kane.”

  He steps towards me and wraps me in his arms. He presses his lips roughly against mine. I can taste the desperate need in him. The need to feel normal, to feel loved.

  I press myself against him, and I gasp as his fingers trail patterns down my back. One of his hands slips around to the front of me, and he gently pushes me open. I gasp again as his fingers slip inside of me.

  He pulls back from me, and I pull his T-shirt off as his fingers probe me, deeper and deeper. I can feel myself riding on a wave of pleasure, and I whisper his name into his mouth as we kiss.

  He speeds up, and my hips move with his rhythm until I can’t hold back anymore. I throw my head back, and this time, I scream his name as I feel an intense rush of pleasure seize me. It starts at his fingertips and moves through my body in warm, sensual waves as I clench around his fingers.

  I step back as the feeling slowly fades. I fumble to get his jeans open and push them down. He takes over, removing his shoes and socks and stepping out of his jeans and boxers. He stands in front of me—damaged yet perfect, broken yet whole. And I know he’s all I’ll ever want.

  I fall to my knees in front of him and take his whole length into my mouth. I grasp his hips to hold myself steady as my mouth works itself up and down him. He groans and says my name in a voice so filled with emotion it almost sounds like he’s in pain.

  He pushes his fingers into my hair, pulling it gently, and the stinging sensation in my scalp makes me pull him in deeper. I trail my tongue up and down him, blowing gently up the length and licking back down him. The coolness against the heat of him makes him moan again.

  I don’t give him any reprieve. I put my mouth on his tip and slowly move my lips all the way down him, taking his length back into my mouth, enjoying the salty taste of him. I pull back and move forward again, faster this time.

  His breathing quickens, and I know he’s close.

  “Get on the bed. I need to be inside you,” Kane moans in a husky voice that’s so full of lust I feel another wash of pleasure spread through my body at the promise of what’s to come.

  I stand up and look him in the eye. Our breaths come in matching pants, and I watch his chest heave, his skin glowing with sweat. I run my tongue over my lips, and I turn to the bed.

  I crawl onto it on all fours and shuffle forward.

  “I’m yours, Kane,” I whisper as he climbs onto the bed behind me.

  I take a sharp intake of breath as he plunges himself into me. Hard. Again and again. I bite my lip and cry out as he stretches me, fills me, makes me feel alive.

  He leans forward and kisses my neck. His tongue makes a circular movement on the sensitive skin below my ear, and I can’t bite back the scream that is building inside of me. He continues kissing my neck as he pumps into me and his hand comes to my body. He pinches my nipple between his thumb and his forefinger, caressing it, pulling it. It’s a sweet mixture of pain and pleasure that’s so intense I don’t think I can take it anymore.

  He slams into me again and again, and I’m lost, floating on a wave of ecstasy. Only the feeling of his skin against mine keeps me here, stopping me from floating away. He pulls out, and I feel like I’ve lost a part of myself, but it’s only for a second. He flips me onto my back and enters me again.

  He leans forward and kisses me passionately, lovingly, his tongue moving against mine. The desperation is gone, replaced with a tenderness that tells me he’s mine every bit as much as I am his.

  We rock our hips together, my legs clenched around Kane’s body, and I never want this moment to end. We are the only two people in the world at that moment, and that’s the way I want it to be. I grasp at his back; I use my legs to pull him in deeper, wanting him to explore the deepest parts of me.

  The wave of pleasure is washing over me again, and Kane leans down and gently nibbles my lower lip. It pushes me over the edge so hard I’m not sure where I am, who I am. All I know is him, and all I feel is the bliss he brings me.

  I scream his name over and over again as he consumes me. He looks me in the eye as I climax, and it’s so intense I can’t blink. I hold his gaze as my whole body clenches and relaxes, clenches and relaxes.

  Just when I think it’s over and my climax starts to fade, I’m hit by another one. My whole body is a raw screaming nerve ending, and every bit of him is driving me over the edge. I close my eyes as my vision begins to blur and I clench the skin on Kane’s back so hard I’m sure I break the skin, but still, he doesn’t stop. He drives into me, hitting my sweet spot and then he’s still, his hardness inside of me pulsing against me, his head pressed against my shoulder as he says my name.

  With a final pulse, I feel his warmth spreading into me.

  He lifts himself up on his elbows as I come back down from the heights he sent me to. I can’t speak, can’t even think. I just look back at him as he collapses gently on me.

  He bends forward and gently kisses me, and then he rolls to the side and lies next to me. We both lie still, panting as his fingers find mine and lock together.

  When I finally feel reasonably normal again, I turn to face him. He props himself up on one elbow and smiles down at me. He kisses the tip of my nose.

  “Thank you,” he says.

  And I know he’s not thanking me for what just happened. He’s thanking me for saving him like he has saved me so many times before.

  “I love you, Liam Kane.”

  I open my eyes as the alarm on my cell phone blasts out. I shut it off, throwing my cell phone on the dresser, and snuggle closer to Kane, feeling the warmth coming from his body. I purposely set the alarm slightly ahead of time so we could get prepared for the mission, so another five minutes won’t hurt.

  I start to close my eyes again, but I see Kane is awake. He smiles at me and pulls me closer to him, kissing me, and I open my eyes again. I wish we could stay here forever, just the two of us, wrapped up in the cocoon of warmth between us. I wish we didn’t have to go on another mission, our most dangerous one yet, and I wish we never had to think about last night. At least the first part of it.

  “We should probably get going,” Kane says, bringing me back to reality, but he makes no move to get out of bed. “Or we could switch our cell phones off and spend the day here.”

  He winks at me.

  “Don’t tempt me,” I reply.

  I stretch out my arms and legs and give a big yawn.

  “You seem pretty tired. I guess you didn’t get much sleep last night,” Kane jokes.

  “And whose fault is that?” I smirk.

  “As I recall, you were the one who demanded to come back here,” Kane replies.

  I blush slightly, but I laugh.

  “I didn’t hear you complaining,” I reply.

&n
bsp; “I wouldn’t want to upset you, would I?”

  He’s laughing, but his words remind me of the argument we had yesterday. So much happened after the argument that I was almost able to push it away, but I know we have to talk about it. It seems Kane has come to the same conclusion.

  “Atlas, about our fight yesterday. I’m sorry, okay? I do want you. I want you more than anything, and you’re the only thing I want. You know that, right?” he says.

  I nod on his chest.

  “Yeah. I’m sorry too. I should have talked to Regal sooner, made it clear it would never happen between us. But I honestly thought it was a mistake to him too, and then when it became clear it wasn’t…well, after Remy and everything else, I guess I didn’t want to make him feel bad,” I say.

  Kane shrugs.

  “I get it. I shouldn’t have freaked out the way I did. I guess I was afraid of losing you, so naturally, I pushed you away. You know, because I’m kind of fucked up like that,” he says.

  He keeps his tone light, but I know what happened after our argument is still playing on his mind. He seems much better than he did last night though, and I dare to let myself think we’ll be okay.

  “You want to know the best part?” Kane says. “None of that freak-out was even about Regal. I know you don’t have feelings for him. It’s not him I’m scared I’ll lose you to. I’m scared of losing you to my dark side. To you seeing who I really am.”

  “I saw who you are last night, Kane. I saw the worst of you when you attacked Marlon, and I saw the best of you when you didn’t kill him. And I’m still here,” I tell him.

  “I appreciate what you said, you know. When you told me to do what I had to do. I really thought I would kill him. But when it came down to it, I couldn’t do it. I know you meant what you said, but I also knew that you would see me differently if I killed him, even if you didn’t want to. And I know there are other things in my past that would make you see me differently as well,” he says.

  I pull myself closer to him.

  “I know all about your past, the things you did, and I’m still here,” I say.

  A look crosses his face. It’s a look I can’t read, but I think there’s something in his past, something I don’t know yet. Something he’s afraid to tell me in case I leave him.

  “Whatever you’ve done in the past, it’s just that. The past. It’s done. Whatever it is, I’ll still be right here by your side. So, if there’s something you want to tell me, just say it. I’m not going anywhere,” I say.

  Kane rolls onto his back and looks up at the ceiling. He’s quiet for so long I start to think he’s not going to tell me what’s on his mind. Just when I’m about to tell him it’s okay, he doesn’t have to tell me if he doesn’t want to, he starts to tell me.

  “There is something in my past. Something I’m deeply ashamed of. Something that will change everything. It happened at a place called Silver Lake.”

  My cell phone rings, startling us both. I glance at the screen. Saudia. I know I should answer it, it could be important, but Kane is close to opening up to me.

  Kane sits up and looks over at my phone.

  “You have to get that,” he says. “It could be important.”

  “I…” I begin.

  He grins. “Just answer it. I’m not going anywhere.”

  I nod and pick up my cell phone and take the call.

  “Hello,” I say.

  Saudia doesn’t waste any time on small talk.

  “Atlas, the map is gone,” she says.

  “Fuck,” I say. “I’ll be right there.”

  I hang up the call and jump out of bed and begin getting dressed. Kane is out of the bed too, already pulling on his clothes.

  “What is it?” he asks.

  “The map’s gone,” I tell him. “Saudia and Tracey memorized all of the steps, but without the symbol, we’ll never find Vulture Valley.”

  Kane and I enter the loft. The team is sitting in the lounge. Saudia jumps to her feet as we enter.

  “I’m sorry for going into your room without permission, Atlas. Tracey and I thought we’d memorized everything, and we just wanted to double-check we had it all down, but then the map was gone. I’m still confident we can recreate the steps, but without the symbol, we’re screwed,” she bursts out.

  I wave away her apology.

  “The map was hidden from intruders, not you guys,” I say. “We just need to go visit Loom and get another copy.”

  “Regal is already on it,” Perry says.

  I didn’t even notice he was missing until Perry pointed it out.

  “Good,” I say. “We need do something about security too. Find a way to stop Quinn or her minions from just waltzing in here. We should have learned our lesson after Regal was poisoned.”

  “So, you’re sure we don’t have a traitor?” Langston asks.

  I shrug.

  “Honestly, I don’t know. But I really don’t want to believe that anyone on the team is capable of such a terrible betrayal. Plus, I think we all have more sense than to trust any of Quinn’s promises,” I reply.

  I hope I’m right. I really do. And the truth is, I don’t have time to try to figure out who it could be if we are being betrayed. Dusk isn’t going to last forever, and we need to get going as soon as Regal returns with the new map.

  As if me thinking it summoned him, Regal rushes into the room.

  “Loom is gone,” he announces.

  “What?” I demand. “What do you mean he’s fucking gone?”

  I didn’t mean to snap at him, but it’s hard not to because I’m getting seriously pissed off with this mission. It’s hard enough without all of the extra barriers, and if I do find out that someone on the team is the cause of them, then Kane might not be the only one with a dark side.

  “I mean he’s gone,” Regal snaps back.

  He softens his tone.

  “The cage was empty when I got there. I don’t know if he escaped or if Quinn went looking for him and freed him. But he’s not there now. I made a few calls, and it seems he’s gone into hiding and no one knows where to find him. Or they’re so afraid of Quinn’s wrath they aren’t talking. Either way, we don’t know where he is,” Regal explains.

  “Dammit,” I shout, banging my fist down on the back of Perry’s chair.

  “Watch the hair,” Perry says, scooting forward.

  “What now?” Langston says.

  “There is something we could try,” Perry says. “We could visit the underground library.”

  Silence falls on the team, and everyone looks uncomfortable.

  “Okay, what am I missing? Because I thought he said we could go to a library, but you all are reacting like he said we should walk into a lion’s cage or something,” I say.

  “I did say library,” Perry explains. “But the underground library isn’t like a normal library. It holds books about everything in the Shadow world. But the thing is, the librarian gets to decide who gets access to the books and who doesn’t. We’d have to persuade him or her to do us a favor, and as I’m sure you’ve noticed, in our world, everything has a price, and it’s usually a price we won’t want to pay. Some of the more dangerous books, and make no mistake, anything containing that map is on the dangerous list, can have waiting lists of over a decade, so to see it today is a pretty big ask.”

  “And let me guess. The librarian is some sort of fire-breathing monster?” I say.

  “We don’t know who the head librarian is. It can be any powerful Shadow who is appointed by the council. But it’s always someone powerful,” Langston says. “Someone we wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of.”

  Regal breaks into a grin.

  “Actually, we do know who it is. Or at least I do. I don’t know why I didn’t think of the underground library sooner,” he says.

  “Wait. You know the head librarian, and we could have just gone there instead of searching for Loom?” Perry says.

  Regal nods, clearly uncomfortable.


  “Yeah. I’m sorry. I guess with all of the Quinn stuff, I’ve been kind of distracted.”

  At least he didn’t try to play the dead sister card. God, I’m such a cynic these days.

  “We’re all pissed off at Quinn, but some of us still manage to stay with the program,” Perry snaps.

  “Says Casanova there,” Saudia mutters.

  “Enough,” I say. “Regal, you know the librarian?”

  “Yeah. He’s a vampire named Farro. He’s extremely dangerous and extremely cunning. But he and my parents go way back. He watched Remy and I grow up. And if I tell him that we need the map as part of a plan to bring down the bitch who murdered Remy, I’m sure he’ll help us out,” Regal says.

  “How sure?” I ask.

  “Eighty percent. But if you have any better ideas, feel free to speak up,” he replies.

  I sigh.

  “I don’t. Let’s go,” I say.

  Within minutes, we’re standing outside of the library. If we find the book within the next hour or so, we should still be okay to reach Vulture Valley today.

  I’m kind of dubious about the library. It’s a tiny little shack stuck on the end of a street of sex shops.

  “Are we sure this is the right place?” I ask.

  Perry nods.

  “Yeah. It’s kept well hidden. People looking for books don’t come down here, and the people who do come down here aren’t in the market for a library. You’ll be amazed when you step inside. It’s a book lover’s dream. It’ll make the bookstore look like a magazine stand.”

  “Everyone stick together,” Regal says. “The place is a bit of a maze, and people have ended up lost in there for days.”

  I have a hundred questions, but we don’t have the time for them, and I decide to roll with it.

  “Whatever happens, make sure you don’t destroy any of the books. If you do, not only will we never get the information we need, but, well, let’s just say that’ll be the least of our worries,” Regal adds.