Elemental Fae Academy: Book Two: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance

by Lexi C. Foss

  However, I nodded to appease her. “We’ll get it under control,” I promised, uncertain of how we would accomplish it, but knowing we needed to.

  The tension in my chest stung again and I rubbed at it. Whatever Cyrus was doing to Claire was strengthening her, and I hoped that meant she’d return soon.

  Because when she did, she had some damn explaining to do.

  If I’d hoped to get some reprieve by returning to the Spirit Quad, I was in for a disappointment.

  Without Claire, the place seemed to fit its reputation. The Spirit Quad had lost what little bit of life she’d sprung back into it, the ground outside a desolate wasteland of cracked, burnt soil and overturned stones.

  My affinity for air cleared my path, flinging away debris as I approached the front door and made my way inside. I found Titus brooding over a cooling plate of leftovers.

  I winced. Admittedly, my cooking had taken a hit ever since that night. I just didn’t have it in me. “Not hungry?” I asked him, leaning against a darkened stump that had once been a dining table.

  Titus didn’t look up. Instead, he glowered at the tepid soup. “It’s too cold.” Meaning he couldn’t heat it up.

  I sighed and rubbed at my chest again. “My powers are on the fritz, too. Whatever Claire did to us—”

  Titus was in my face, eyes wild with awakened embers, before I had a chance to even think about finishing that sentence. “This isn’t Claire’s fault,” he snapped.

  Normally, I’d find the Fire Fae intimidating, but I didn’t have the patience for his short temper today. I sent a gust of wind reeling and aimed at his chest.

  He grunted as the force knocked him back. My powers didn’t seem to work unless I was emotionally invested, like right now with Titus in my face, which wasn’t like me at all. I wouldn’t admit how much that lack of control unsettled me.

  “Where’s Sol?” I asked. “Perhaps he’s better company right now.”

  Titus ground his teeth before replying. “Out back. But if you think he’s better company than me, good fucking luck.” Titus shoved past me, his embers burning my Academy robes as he went.

  I doused the tiny flames with a snap of wind and thought about going after the Fire Fae, but a fight was what he wanted.

  Actually, you know what? Fuck it. I want a fight, too.

  My vision went white, and with it, a tornado burst into existence. Every display of weakness I’d had over the past few days transformed into what was really hiding under the surface. My royal lineage had been dormant, suppressed under years of careful control, but something had cracked, allowing it to escape.

  Titus bellowed and didn’t have time to stop the force from launching him into the air. He hit the wall—hard—and landed with a thud. He popped back onto his feet and grinned.

  “A challenge? Who knew you had it in you?” His smile was feral. “Let’s take it outside and burn off some steam. Or better yet, let’s go find her.”

  The fae wasn’t even fazed by my attack.

  He just wanted a sparring partner. A way to let loose.

  I dismissed the tornado with a flick of my wrist, sending siding and damaged wood crashing to the ground. Our kitchen was even more hopelessly ruined. Not that I cared.

  Okay, maybe I did a little.

  Damn it!

  “We can’t just go barreling into the Water Kingdom without permission. We are Academy students,” I reminded him. “We don’t have the clearance or the right to trespass.” It was Elana’s dream to unite the fae, the Academy being a grand gesture in that regard, but borders were tighter than ever since the plague hit.

  Titus growled. “I’m so fucking tired of these excuses.” Fire burst up his arms, then quelled, and then flamed again. “Claire is stuck there, and if Cyrus isn’t going to tell us what the fuck is going on, he can’t blame us for going after her. Can’t you feel that she needs us?”

  Yes, of course I could feel her.

  That was the problem.

  “I’m not going anywhere without Sol,” I said, my air rumbling over the ground in tiny somersaults.

  “I think you’ll find him far more willing than you realize. Ask him.” Red veins spidered down Titus’s arms as if a volcano built inside of him and was just itching to get out. “Actually, you know what? Fuck that. If you and Sol aren’t at the front door in five minutes, I’m leaving without you assholes.”

  Cursing under my breath, I snatched up the tepid soup—which had remained miraculously untouched—and marched toward the back of the quad. Even if it was pathetic food, it was still food. And I needed something to bargain with.

  “Sol!” I bellowed.

  I hadn’t checked on the peach orchard since that night, but stopped, alarmed, when I saw the unexpected decay. What Sol had spent days putting his energy into, a thriving forest of life and sweet fruit, was now a graveyard. Wilted trees hung with rotten fruit, and a sour scent spiked the air.

  I found Sol slumped against one of the larger trees that had a scar down its center and leaned precariously to the side with half of its roots upended. Sol didn’t seem to notice and tossed pebbles across the dirt.

  “Sol,” I tried again, my voice softer as I approached him. “You all right, buddy?”

  He glanced up at me, and he looked just as tired as I felt. “It’s all ruined,” he lamented. “When Claire gets back, she’s going to be so disappointed. She didn’t get to see what it looked like… before.” He turned his attention back to the ground, and his shoulders sagged.

  I set the bowl of soup next to him. “You sure you don’t want to eat something?”

  He wrinkled his nose at the bowl. “I’m good, thanks.”

  Sitting down, I sighed. “Well, we’re a sorry pair, aren’t we?”

  Sol scoffed. “That’s what happens when we find a beautiful mate and Cyrus keeps her all to himself.”

  My fist curled at the thought. I forced myself to loosen my fingers. “We didn’t find a mate.” I palmed the back of my neck, noting the knots there and wincing. “She didn’t give us much of a choice.”

  Sol’s eyes, the color of the earth with flecks of green, glanced at me, full of disdain. “Is that what you really think? She chose us, Vox.”

  “Actually, she didn’t.” The memories of the last few weeks had me jumping to my feet. I started pacing, my air working overtime to brush aside the countless stones Sol had scattered across the courtyard. The pungent smell of rotting fruit wasn’t helping my mood, either. “Maybe she chose you, but she didn’t choose me,” I continued, needing him to understand. “Think about it, Sol. She asked you to the ball. I’m just a convenient Air Fae for her to suck dry. I’m a fucking mentor with benefits.”

  And I was not pleased about it.

  “Don’t talk about her like that,” Sol warned as the ground trembled. “She was dying, Vox. And she would never force a mating bond. Claire isn’t like that. She needs us just as much as we need her, and I know you can feel her inside of you.” He rubbed a fist over his heart, in the same spot where my own chest ached with a need I couldn’t understand. “Trust your soul for once, not your head.”

  I scoffed and opened my arms at the expanse of destruction around us. “You mean you’re taking it so well?” I marched over to him and bent to stab a finger into his chest, which hurt when my knuckle popped, but I didn’t care. “Look at this place, Sol. You’re falling apart without her because she bonded to you, and she’s not even fucking here!”

  “Enough!” came a voice with enough power to make both Sol and me flinch.

  Authority.

  Demand.

  I turned, only to have every air molecule inside of me wilt with both relief and fury.

  Cyrus stood with an unconscious Claire in his arms, and all I wanted to do was punch him in the face.

  Cyrus

  What a fucking mess, I thought while laying Claire down in her bed. The silky blue robe she wore contrasted with the cotton surrounding her. I slid it from her shoulders, removing it en
tirely, and allowed her to nest into the familiarity of her own sheets.

  She murmured something unintelligible, lost to her dreams, but I immediately felt her content at the energy strengthening around her. Returning her to the Academy had been the right call.

  Even if I had three very angry fae at my back. They were oblivious to Claire’s nakedness, mostly because I blocked their view of it.

  Once the blankets covered her completely, I turned to face the fuming mob.

  Titus seemed ready to push forward, to take over, but I shoved him back with a water punch to the chest. “Outside,” I demanded, not wanting to disturb Claire. She needed more rest.

  All three of the men appeared ready to argue, but one pointed glance over my shoulder at the sleeping beauty had the trio marching toward the exit.

  “You have a lot of explaining to do,” Titus snapped as soon as we exited the building.

  “What the hell did you do to the kitchen?” I asked instead, having noted all the destruction along the way. At least Claire’s bedroom appeared safe and clean.

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” Titus was apparently ready to kill me. I couldn’t blame him. It wasn’t like I’d explained much yet. “What the hell happened to Claire?”

  “That’s an excellent question,” I replied, folding my arms. “One I’m still trying to figure out myself. Some sort of entity latched onto her in the death fields and drained her elements.” What perplexed me most was that it hadn’t touched me at all, only Claire. “It nearly killed her.”

  “Clearly.” Vox rubbed his chest, his brow furrowing. “She mated with all three of us.”

  “I know.” I’d felt it. “She required the strength. Without it, she would have died.”

  “Which is why you mated with her as well?” Titus pressed, clearly sensing our intense connection.

  I nodded. “You were too far away to help, and Exos, well, he’s still missing. So I completed the ceremony and lent her my elements.” It had left me drained, but functioning. Unlike these three. They all appeared to be swept away with the waves, their exhaustion palpable. “What the hell have you been doing all week?”

  A laugh burst from Titus, one born not of amusement but of disbelief.

  And Sol followed suit.

  Same with Vox.

  “Have you all lost your minds?” I demanded, alarmed.

  “You’re joking right?” Titus chuckled again, the sound broken and oddly maniacal.

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” I demanded.

  “Oh, fuck you,” Vox said, uncharacteristically confrontational. I saw it then, the anger lingering in his gaze. Sol’s eyes held a glimmer of it, too.

  They all appeared desperate.

  No… they were furious.

  Titus lost his cool first, the fire bursting out of him and nearly hitting me square in my chest.

  “Seriously?” I shouted, infuriated by the ridiculous attack. Even though I was weakened by Claire, he was no match for me. Except Vox joined him next with a howl of wind that swept my hair back and pushed me several feet into the dead courtyard.

  A courtyard that was sinking quickly into a hole created by the Earth Fae.

  “Okay,” I said, calm despite the three-way attack. “I can see we have some aggression issues to work through.” I shoved them all back with a wave that swept the three of them off their feet. “You want to play with me? Let’s do this. But I expect your best, not this cockamamie bullshit attempt.” I lifted my hand in a come get me gesture. “And when I win—which I will—I expect a little more respect while we discuss next steps.”

  None of them acknowledged me.

  They just attacked.

  Idiots.

  But I supposed I deserved it. I hadn’t exactly been forthcoming over the last week, what with being too busy saving Claire. And fucking her senseless.

  Yeah, all right, I’d be mad, too.

  So I allowed Titus to get one good fire punch in, the stroke of it singeing my cheek. I gave Vox his chance to slap me with a clap of wind. And I granted Sol one powerful shake beneath my feet.

  Then I went to work, schooling the three of them simultaneously with a shock of water that temporarily doused their fight. It wasn’t good enough to knock some sense into them, though, because they came at me with a renewed vigor, determined to drown me in their anguish and frustration.

  And while I may have deserved some of it, I wasn’t about to accept all of the blame.

  “I saved Claire,” I reminded them all. “Without me, she would have died.”

  “Without you, she wouldn’t have been in danger to begin with,” Titus tossed back over the roaring winds. “You are the reason she almost died!”

  “And you left us here with no word,” Vox added. “No idea of how she was doing, while expecting us to give her everything.”

  “What they said,” Sol agreed.

  Well, at least they were all working as a unit.

  “I didn’t almost kill her. Whatever trap Mortus left for us was the culprit.” That was the argument I’d given myself for the last week. It almost satisfied me. Almost. “How is our fighting benefiting Claire?”

  “I don’t know, but I feel a hell of a lot better right now.” Sol’s words vibrated the earth, the giant finally allowing his powers out to play.

  While I appreciated the show of force, I would have preferred it to not be directed at me.

  “You feel better because Claire is back,” I informed them, my words carried over the wake of another wave that sent them all to the ground. Again. “Now stop wasting my time and let’s talk about this like—”

  A blast of fire knocked me backward a few feet, the flames burning a hole in my suit.

  “Okay.” I brushed off the embers. “Right. We’ll work this out the unintelligent way, then.” I showered them all with hail, which earned me a whip of sound to my ear—Vox attacking strategically. “Remember, I tried to warn you,” I said, infusing a hint of disappointment into my tone.

  And then I let them truly feel the brunt of my power.

  They would all bow by the time I finished.

  I was, after all, a Royal King, and they were about to find out what that meant.

  Exos

  Claire, I whispered, sensing her stronger state. Baby, I need you to hear me now. I can’t wait any longer. You feel it, don’t you? Our connection fraying? Another day or two and it’ll be too late. I need you to find me now.

  Silence.

  I paced in my dark cell, frustrated. I’d hoped by now that someone would check up on me down here. Alas, no. I was just as alone as the first day I awoke—whenever that was.

  At least the inky presence had disappeared. Well, mostly. The culprit had left some residue in my mind, blocking the memories I desired most. While I recognized the energy signature, I couldn’t recall the owner, and it was pissing me the fuck off.

  I couldn’t even recall who knocked me out to begin with, yet I firmly remembered the sensation of being blasted from behind.

  Claire, I tried again. Baby, please.

  Still nothing.

  I growled and kept moving, doing everything I could to keep my body in prime condition. A month of lounging had resulted in slight deterioration, but not much. Fae could withstand far worse treatment, including an extended time period without food.

  Of course, that didn’t make me any less hungry or thirsty.

  Fuck, what I wouldn’t give for a crackle pie right now. Juicy, thick, and oh-so decadent. I sent images of it to Claire for fun, wondering if I could wake her with thoughts of food.

  Or even better…

  I thought about running my hands over her body, our spirits dancing on a plane only we could reach, and drew kisses down her sternum to the sweet place between her thighs. I love the way you taste, I whispered. Mmm, I miss it, Claire. When I see you again, I’m going to devour every inch of you and kill anyone who gets in my way.

  A flicker of something came back to me.

  Intrigu
e.

  I smiled. So sex is how I get you to talk to me, is it?

  A sleepy unintelligible murmur traveled through our link, amusing me despite my surroundings.

  You want me to continue? I taunted. Talk to you about how I plan to fuck you for the first time? How I intend to make you scream for hours upon hours?

  Exos… She sounded so tired.

  Yes, baby, I’m here, I whispered to her. I’m sorry for waking you, but I need you to find me. Can you do that for me, Claire? Can you track me by using our link?

  No reply.

  “Fuck,” I groaned, slamming my fist into the wall. If I didn’t get her up soon, our link would die. Permanently.

  So I tried again.

  And again.

  Her name blossoming into a prayer inside my mind, my heart begging her to hear me, to focus, to come for me.

  I’m not giving up, I told her. You will hear me. Now wake up, Claire. Wake. Up. Right. Now.

  Claire

  Mmm, I loved this dream.

  Exos’s hands swam over my skin, heating my sides, my breasts, my throat. And Cyrus remained a cool presence at my back, his fingers trailing along the warmth to leave ice in their wake.

  Hot and cold.

  A torture underlined in delicious energy and followed by lips tracing every inch of my form. Both men were powerful, their elements playing with mine and building an inferno between my thighs.

  They wanted to enter me at the same time.

  Oh, it was wicked.

  Could I let them?

  Would I enjoy it?

  Yes, they whispered in unison.

  Oh God… I shuddered, the sensations overwhelming my mind and forcing me into awareness as I exploded in the silence of the night.

  Alone.

  With my hand between my legs.

  “Shit,” I breathed, convulsing wildly from the orgasm I hadn’t expected to be real. “That’s new…” I collapsed onto the bed, the black sheets familiar and scented of Titus, not Cyrus or Exos.

  I frowned. Why did that feel wrong? I’d dreamt of silky blue sheets, a stream running near the foot of the bed, and a handsome Water Fae with a talented tongue.