by Lexi C. Foss
“The principle of the matter,” he repeated, the heat of his torso practically melting the shirt from my own body. Or maybe it was my ire threatening to light the fabric on fire. “Fuck, woman, you drive me insane.”
My eyebrows shot upward. “I drive you insane? You kidnapped me and brought me to a fae realm.”
“Because you were being difficult. Wow, imagine that.” He had the audacity to roll his eyes.
“Are you kidding? You told me to go fetch you a drink like a dog while you danced with Ryan. Right after kissing me. In front of the whole school. Excuse me for reacting accordingly.”
“You ran.”
“Of course I did!” God, this guy was impossible. “Can you blame me? You chose Ryan over me.”
“I did not.”
“No? You sent me off on an errand, Trayton. So you could dance with her, of all people.” Just thinking about it caused my blood to boil. My fists curled at my sides. “I’m not sleeping in your bed. In fact, I want a new room. Maybe Kols will let me sleep on his couch.”
He growled, stepping into my personal space and wrapping his arm around my lower back to hold me in place. “Over my dead body.”
“I’d happily arrange that,” I said sweetly.
He snorted. “I just bet you would.” He kept one arm around my back while his opposite hand came up to cradle my cheek—a rather tender move considering the anger vibrating off him in waves. “There’s just one thing you’re forgetting, Isabella Cinder.”
“Yeah?” I grabbed his wrist, squeezing in warning. “And what’s that?”
“You want me alive,” he replied. “Because otherwise, I couldn’t do this.”
His mouth claimed mine before I could issue a retort. Not that I had one. Because holy crap, Trayton Nacht was kissing me. Again.
Chapter Thirteen
Tray
Isabella Cinder drove me crazy. I couldn’t tell if I wanted to kill her or fuck her.
No.
That wasn’t true.
Right now? I very much wanted to fuck her. Preferably against the wall, and hard. Because damn, she had a mouth on her. Content and quiet one moment, and biting my head off the next. Did I deserve it? Maybe. But not over the damn bed. I’d offered it to be a gentleman, and she’d turned that gesture around on me for no practical reason.
Insufferable female.
Oh, but she tasted minty and fresh and very much mine.
I tightened my grip around her as she melted into me. At least in this she submitted, her body recognizing mine on a level she would soon understand—intimately.
My tongue seduced hers, my palm sliding from her cheek to the back of her neck to better angle her head to receive my kiss. She moaned, the sound going straight to my already hard dick.
I walked her backward toward my bed, hoping like hell it didn’t ignite our bickering. Or maybe I’d welcome it. There were worse activities than kissing this woman into submission.
She gave a little squeak when the back of her legs hit the mattress, but I swallowed her protest and grabbed her hips to lift her into the air. Another of those surprised little sounds fell from her lips as I picked her up. “Tray—”
I tossed her into the center of the bed and climbed over her before she could argue. “Shush, Isabella. We’re done talking. All I want is to devour you.” I took her mouth again, silencing whatever she’d been about to say.
A low groan vibrated her throat, causing me to smile.
Yes, darling, I thought. Just like that.
Her fingers threaded through my hair, holding me to her as she returned my kiss with a fierce one of her own. And damn if it didn’t light my soul on fire for her.
Fuck.
This woman was going to kill me in the best way.
My palms slid up her sides, memorizing her svelte curves over the fabric of my shirt—which looked so damn hot on her that I wanted to rip it off. But I wouldn’t push her. The way she shivered as my hands brushed the swell of her breasts confirmed all my suspicions about her innocence. Ella had hardly been touched. Not surprising given her last few years of hell.
Mmm, she would require a slow introduction.
I could handle that.
I trailed my lips across her jaw to her neck, then kissed the hollow of her throat before nibbling her racing pulse. She jolted beneath me, her body recognizing my darker desire. “Don’t worry, little dove,” I whispered, licking the slender column up to her ear. “I won’t bite you.”
Not because I didn’t want to.
But because it would initiate our mating trial.
And she’d been through more than enough tonight.
“Tray,” she whispered, arching into me in a needy way that made it very hard for me to behave.
I slid one of my thighs between hers to provide the pressure she unknowingly craved, my mouth returning to hers. The heat radiating from her core went straight through the fabric of our clothes, branding my skin and setting my blood on fire for her. I allowed the intensity to fuel our kiss, my tongue claiming hers.
She groaned.
I growled.
The sounds of our passion were a prelude to our future. Our souls already knew our fates, the bloodlines tied in a manner neither of us could deny. I felt it that day I met her, the stark yearning to claim her as mine.
Most Midnight Fae never experienced the instant connection, our matings arranged by the Council or through familial pairings. Fortunately, my intended came from an acceptable bloodline even with her Halfling heritage tainting her fae essence.
Oh, there was still so much to explain to her.
So much to teach her.
And not just in the bedroom.
Although, I wouldn’t mind starting there.
I skimmed my hands up her sides again, this time beneath the shirt. Her overheated skin felt heavenly against my palms. My thigh flexed in time with her eager movements, her senses completely lost to the lust-driven cloud consuming us.
Instinct told me I could take anything I wanted from her like this, her body utterly mine in these precious moments.
Which meant I needed to proceed carefully, to maintain and earn her trust.
She raked her nails down my spine, grabbing my ass to pull me impossibly closer, her little mewls of satisfaction music to my ears.
This, I could give her.
But nothing more.
Not until she could think clearly and properly consent.
I nipped her jaw, sucked the tender point between her neck and her shoulder, and allowed my fingers to wander dangerously close to her fleshier curves. Her nipples were hard through the thin fabric of the shirt, calling for my touch, but that earlier tremble remained at the forefront of my mind.
Not yet, I thought. But soon.
Ella whimpered, her pleasure cresting between her legs. I felt it in the dampness bleeding into my pants. My tongue longed for a taste, her arousal permeating the air around us and seducing my senses.
“You’re killing me,” I admitted softly, practically panting against her neck.
Her fingers returned to my hair, tugging me up to kiss her again, her mouth wild against mine.
She’d accuse me of compelling her again.
But I wasn’t.
It was her inner fae fighting to come out, to claim what she recognized as hers.
Explaining that was going to be a nightmare.
Or maybe she’d surprise me and accept it. She’d certainly handled everything else somewhat well so far.
Ella pushed into my thigh on a sharp thrust, her back bowing off the bed as a cry spilled from her beautiful lips.
“Gorgeous,” I marveled out loud, admiring her as she fell apart beneath me.
Golden hair fanned against my pillows.
Rosy cheeks.
A swollen mouth designed for sin.
My cock ached, desperate to play, but I swallowed the urge and nuzzled her throat instead, to help bring her down from her high. She released a long breath, her grip
loosening in my hair.
And then she stiffened.
Yeah, I expected that, I thought, mentally sighing.
“Wh-what did you just do to me?” she stammered, her heart racing a mile a minute.
“Exactly what I said I would,” I replied, bracing myself on my elbows—my forearms resting on the mattress along either side of her head. If she wanted to escape, she’d have one hell of a fight.
“I… I don’t…” She blinked, her blue eyes an intoxicating mix of pleasure and confusion.
“I devoured you, sweetheart.” I smiled. “And you enjoyed it.”
“You com—”
“I did not compel you,” I interjected, cutting off the accusation before she could give it a voice. “I kissed you. And those swollen lips of yours are proof that you more than kissed me back. Compulsion alters perception, Isabella. And you were not only aware but also complicit throughout all of that, including your orgasm.”
She stared at me for a long second. “Yeah, I was going to say you completely blew my mind, but okay.”
I narrowed my gaze. “While I know I did, I doubt that’s what you were going to say.”
“Well, you’ll never know now since you so rudely interrupted me.” She placed her hands on my shoulders, shoving upward. “Move.”
I didn’t budge. “No.” I pressed my lips to the edge of her mouth to soften my refusal and added, “I’m sorry, Ella.” I skimmed my nose across her cheek to kiss her jaw. “Forgive me, please?” I didn’t want to ruin the moment, not when we were so close to finally understanding each other.
She tugged on my hair, yanking my head back to meet her gaze, her expression scrutinizing. “I can’t tell if you’re poking fun at me or if you actually mean that.”
Sighing, I rolled off her and onto my back beside her. My thigh tingled with the reminder of her arousal, my dick still hard as a fucking rock inside my pants. But my mind… my mind was tired. It’d been a long day, and we really needed to get some rest.
“Can I share the bed with you?” I asked her softly, too exhausted to bicker anymore. “I promise to keep my hands to myself. I’ll even sleep on top of the sheets.”
I didn’t look at her while I spoke, my focus on the high ceiling above. Mostly because I didn’t want to see her expression. If she went into another rant about the sleeping arrangements, I’d go sleep on Kols’s couch or something.
Silence.
Of course.
All right, well, clearly, she wanted space. “Okay, I can take a hint,” I said, sitting up. “It’s been an eventful evening, and all of this is a lot to take in. I’m going to go hang out with Kols. We need to catch up anyway.” Not true. But I suspect Ella would argue if she knew I was giving up my room for her. Wasn’t that what set her off earlier? My offering my bed?
I nearly snorted. Impossible female.
Her hand snagged my wrist before I could leave the bed, her grip surprisingly strong. “Stay,” she said, clearing her throat. “I mean please. Please stay.”
My eyebrows shot upward. Did she just say something mildly polite? I almost uttered the words out loud but thought better of it. Because those would spike another argument. Instead, I lay back down with a softly spoken “Okay.”
A calm energy settled between us, one I welcomed with a yawn.
Ella rotated on her side, facing me. “Why did you dance with Ryan?” Her whisper of a voice pulled my focus toward her, my eyes meeting hers as I remained on my back beside her.
“Because I wanted to have a word with her regarding her unwelcome interruption,” I admitted. “Your stepsisters want me to make you fall in love with me so I can break you publicly in front of the school. I pointed out to her that her intrusion was counterproductive to the goal.”
Ella gaped at me. “What?”
“Yeah, your stepsisters are evil incarnate. Hence the reason I want them destroyed.” I rolled my head back onto the pillow again, my gaze flickering up to the ceiling once more. “My thought is that we’ll date for a few months, while secretly working on a way to bring them all down. Then, right about when Ryan expects me to shatter your heart, we’ll demolish her instead.”
Ryan and Carmen didn’t have hearts, so playing them in a similar manner wouldn’t work.
“I think it’s their social status we need to dismantle,” I added, thinking out loud. “We’ll need to decide if Clarissa should burn with them.”
Ella popped up onto her elbow, her blue eyes bright as she stared down at me. “You’re serious.”
“Yeah. I think I’ve mentioned this idea a few times.”
“You really want me to get revenge on them.”
“Of course I do.” My brow furrowed. “What I want to know is, why don’t you want revenge? Those bitches have put you through hell and back. Dash and Charlie are no better. Why do you allow it? Why don’t you fight back?”
“Because fighting back only brings on more attention. I learned a long time ago that ignoring them affords me more peace.”
“Peace,” I repeated, snorting. “Was this week peaceful for you? With Charlie pestering you every morning in English class, the two idiots wanting to drown you in the pool, and then that circus tonight at the dance?”
“Well, it was more eventful than normal, thanks to a new student showing up,” she drawled.
“Come on, Ella. Be serious for a moment. Even had I not shown up, those two idiots would have pestered you. And who knows what your stepsisters would have done had I not offered the distraction of a new game.”
“Wait, you suggested the whole breaking-my-heart thing?”
“More like I steered Ryan into the idea,” I clarified. “It gave me an excuse to spend time with you, while also pretending to be on their team. Win-win.”
She scoffed at that. “Being on their team isn’t a win.”
“It is when you want to take the bastards down,” I countered, going onto my elbow to mimic her pose. “Think about it, Ella. If they believe I’m on their side, they’ll let down their guard around me and give us ways to infiltrate their circle and destroy them from the inside. It’s a brilliant plan.”
“Seriously, why are you wasting your time on this?” she demanded. “They’re a bunch of high school humans. Seems pretty insignificant when compared to all this.” She gestured with a hand around my room, but I understood what she meant—the Midnight Fae Realm.
“Something they’ve done has hindered your access to your powers.” I reached across the space between us to palm her cheek. “I take that offense very seriously. As should you, Ella. You’ve spent years crafting impenetrable walls to hide from their torment, and I suspect that’s part of the block on your inner fae.”
She bit her cheek, then shook her head slowly. “I just don’t see how exacting revenge will help me in the long run.”
“Maybe it won’t help you, but it’ll help the next person they bully. And it’s very likely that whoever their next target is won’t be nearly as strong as you.” Actually, I could guarantee it. Ella had endured enough torment to last a lifetime. It strengthened her in ways that would benefit her in the Midnight Fae Realm, assuming we could figure out how to unlock her gifts.
“I’ve never thought about that,” she said quietly, lying down on her side once more, facing me. I copied the motion, my hand sliding to her neck. “I’ve always focused on escaping, not what would come next for them.”
“They’ve existed in a world where they can do whatever they want to whomever they want, without punishment. I can only imagine the wickedness in their future. It won’t be pleasant for whomever they target.”
“Unless we find a way to teach them a lesson.”
Oh, I wanted to do more than that. They didn’t deserve a mere lesson, but a complete life change—one that put them in their own personal purgatories. However, I would follow Ella’s lead in this. She could decide the level of punishment.
“There are still several months left of the school year,” I murmured. “The longer it
takes for our relationship to develop, the more time we’ll have to plot against the supposed royalty of Darlington. Plus, in the interim, I can teach you more about the Midnight Fae and our Academy, and we can explore the binds on your abilities.”
“So you’re planning to come back to high school with me,” she said, a wry note in her voice. “Sounds like you’re punishing yourself.”
I smirked. “Trust me, I’m not.”
“Uh-huh.” Her eyes twinkled. “You’re saying you enjoy being my little fairy god—uh, well, no. Not godfather.” She scrunched her brow. “I guess a guardian angel, except not.”
“I’m a fae, not a fairy,” I corrected. “And I’m definitely not an angel.”
“It’s from a fairy tale,” she said. “You know, the fairy godmother? Helps the chick get ready for the ball? You pretty much did that tonight. Although, you failed to get me back by midnight.” Her eyes widened. “No, you brought me to the Midnight Fae Realm. Holy crap, I’m…” She shook her head. “Yeah, never mind. I need to sleep now.”
Given all the gibberish she’d just spouted at me, I couldn’t agree more. “Yeah, that’s a good idea.”
She huffed a delirious little laugh and rolled around in the blankets, creating an adorable little nest on her side of the bed. I loved how small and protected she appeared, engulfed by satin and cotton. She closed her eyes, her head burrowing into the pillow.
I sent a spark of magic to the lights, dimming them to a dusk-like glow. The blackout shades would slide down in about an hour. Something told me she’d be too exhausted to notice.
“Tray?” she murmured.
I glanced at her, but her eyes were still closed. “Yeah?”
“You can sleep under the sheets.”
Chapter Fourteen
Ella
My stepmother didn’t notice my absence. Or maybe she did and just didn’t care. All my chores were done before school this morning, which seemed to be her only concern in terms of my existence.
I blew a stray strand of hair out of my face and waited for my English class to begin.