by Lexi C. Foss
“Of course.” I brushed my nose against hers. “Reconnaissance only.”
“Promise?”
“I vow it.” I pecked her lips once more and shifted back to my knees as I sensed a new presence enter the room. I ignored him and decided to have a little fun instead. “Now that I’ve let Titus and Vox get to know each other, I think it’s time we join them to make sure they’re both still alive.”
Her eyebrows rose, the innocence in her features telling me she’d not sensed Titus’s entrance yet. Likely because I’d distracted her with our bonding and other more arousing activities.
“They don’t like each other?” she asked.
I lifted a shoulder. “As I said, Titus has some pent-up anger issues. But Vox strikes me as the calm, collected type. Maybe they can be friends.”
“As he doesn’t harbor a penchant for bossing me around, I think we’ll get along just fine,” Titus deadpanned.
Claire froze while I chuckled. “Our Claire is awake, by the way.”
“I can see that,” he replied, the possessive growl in his voice no better than before. The Fire Fae seemed ready to combust, and while I trusted him not to harm Claire, I didn’t necessarily trust him not to hurt me.
Leaning down to kiss her one last time, I rolled off the bed and grabbed a shirt from the closet. She hadn’t moved, her wide gaze on a glowering Titus. He clearly sensed the heightened bond within her, and his clenched hands said how he felt about it.
I pressed my palm to his chest to back him up a few paces into the wall and caught his fist before it could meet my face. “Vox and I are leaving to track the energy signature. Claire wanted to join us, but I suggested she spend some time here with you. Alone.” I lifted an eyebrow with the final word, ensuring he followed my insinuation. “Does that work for you?”
Flames danced in his gaze as he studied my features. Then his shoulders seemed to relax as he gave me a stiff nod.
“I promised Claire we won’t act on any information without her. And I imagine we’ll be back in a few hours.”
Another nod. “Okay.”
“Okay.” I released him and went to retrieve my shoes. Claire had sat up on the bed during our discussion, her lower lip snagged between her teeth. I bent to tug it between my own, giving her a little nibble. “Try not to burn the dorm down, baby.”
Her cheeks flushed an adorable shade of red, causing me to chuckle. It physically pained me to leave her in the hands of another man, but while Titus might not be my favorite fae, I couldn’t deny his compatibility with Claire.
And as such, I trusted him implicitly with her life.
He stopped me with a hand on my forearm, his green eyes holding a touch of gratitude in them as they captured mine.
No words were spoken.
Not even another nod.
Just a brief look of understanding before he released me.
“Be careful,” Claire called after me, causing me to pause on the threshold.
I glanced back at her, amused. “I’m a Royal Fae, baby. There’s no one on this campus who can touch me. Except you.” And with that, I met Vox in the hallway. “Let’s go, Air Fae. I want to see what you can do.”
Claire
Two men.
Fae.
Both mates.
Watching them interact was… hot.
Mainly because Titus had this sexy glower thing going on while Exos still managed to alpha him with that shove against the wall. It provoked all manner of inappropriate thoughts, ones that only seemed to intensify as Titus gazed at me from across the room.
“Are you hungry, Claire?” he asked, his voice low.
I couldn’t tell if he meant for food or for him. But the answer was a resounding “Yes” either way. Mostly for something of the sexual variety, considering Exos had spent the last however many minutes heating me up, just to leave.
His essence seemed to swim through my veins, his scent forever clinging to me. Because of the bond. He’d been right about it deepening our connection. I could almost sense him in my mind, his resounding amusement at leaving me hot and bothered in his wake.
Or maybe that was my imagination. But it didn’t seem too far-fetched a notion.
Titus leaned against the wall. “Are you going to assault me again if I come over there?”
“Again?” I asked, confused.
“You don’t remember pulling me onto the bed and rubbing that delicious body all over me while mewling?”
My jaw dropped. “What?”
He snorted. “I see Exos failed to mention that part of your drunk little episode.” He straightened. “You should eat something.”
I frowned as he left. “Okay…”
Is he mad at me? Because of the bond with Exos?
Shit.
I slid off the bed and trailed after him toward the apartment kitchen. Titus stood by the refrigerator, his ass looking mighty fine in a pair of snug jeans. He’d changed out of uniform attire and into casual garb, while I still wore my skirt and sweater—two things that were slightly worn and torn from the Air Quad incident earlier.
My mouth twisted to the side. I remembered taking down the monstrosity and that it wasn’t something I created, but I couldn’t recall anything after that. How did I end up passed out in bed? And what did Titus mean about assaulting him?
“Have I done something to anger you?” I blurted out when he didn’t acknowledge my presence.
He glanced over his shoulder with his eyebrows raised. “Do I feel angry to you?” he asked, the question holding a hint of genuine curiosity.
“Uh, well, no, but you’re being all… stiff.” I couldn’t come up with a better term.
His lips curled. “That, yes, I definitely am.” He returned to his task of placing odd items on the counter. The food in this world was foreign and leafy, and while none of it appeared appetizing, it was mysteriously delicious.
I hopped up onto the counter beside his preparations, wanting to see his expression while we spoke. “What did I do? I don’t remember anything after the, uh, tornado.”
His emerald eyes flickered up to mine briefly before he pulled a knife from the block behind my back. “Aerie sent a targeted blast of wind into your head. It’s meant to incapacitate an attacker.”
“Oh.” I noticed her in the class earlier, just hadn’t realized what she’d done. I almost asked him why she targeted me, but I already knew. “She thought I created the tornado.”
“That, and she’s just a bitch. She’s lucky Exos was there and not me. I’d have lit her ass on fire.” The conviction in his tone had me grinning. “Vox said she targeted your mind, something about the frontal lobe. It essentially made you very drunk.”
“And I assaulted you?” I pressed, wondering what the hell he meant by that.
His dimples flashed as he finished slicing up the items on his board. “You practically forced me to join you in bed.” He tapped me lightly on the nose with the edge of his blade before turning to deposit it in the sink. “Which is why, Claire”—he rotated once more and grabbed my hips—“I’m stiff.” He tugged me to the edge of the counter, forcing me to wrap my legs around his waist for balance.
I moaned at the feel of his hot arousal aligning with my center and clung to his shoulders as he rocked against me.
“I thought you were mad at me,” I admitted, arching into him.
“Oh, I am,” he said, his mouth brushing mine with the words. “You drive me crazy, sweetheart. Grinding all over me, telling me to fuck you when you know I can’t. It makes me very, very mad. For you.”
“I… I told you to fuck me?” It came out on a squeak.
“More like demanded.” He nipped my lower lip, then dipped his tongue inside to seduce mine in a dance that left me writhing against him. “Mmm, I’m going to drive you wild, Claire. Taunt you until you beg me to slide inside your slick heat and claim you in a way no other fae has.”
Fire licked up and down my arms, eating through my Academy sweater and wasting the
fabric away to ash. I gasped as the flames reached my breasts, destroying the fibers along the way until I sat topless on the counter before a smirking Titus. Even my bra was gone.
“Shall we begin, sweetheart?” he asked softly.
“That wasn’t the beginning?”
“Not even close,” he murmured.
Embers swirled around my nipples, causing them to stiffen beneath the heat. Part of me recognized that it should hurt, but my inner fire caressed the one Titus created, and welcomed the resulting singe.
Just like with Exos, I felt our connection teetering dangerously on the edge of something more. I couldn’t explain it, not outwardly. It simply existed. A tangible presence between us, an unspoken contract of fate, just waiting for my mental stamp of acceptance.
“Titus…” I grasped his shoulders, my skin prickling with energy from the wisps of smoke smoldering against my skin. His hands remained on my hips, holding me tightly against his groin.
He smiled. “More?”
I didn’t get a chance to reply.
My skirt and panties went up in a whirling blaze of heat—gone in a flash.
I gasped. He’d undressed me before, but never like this. Never with his power roaming over my body, prickling at my nerves, caressing me in sensuality, and destroying all the fabric on me. Even my socks were gone.
“Mmm, that’s better.” He slid me backward on the counter. “Don’t move.”
His index finger brushed my knee as he stepped out from between my legs. I shivered at the sensation of electricity humming over my thighs from that little touch, then noticed the flickering energy slowly crawling up my skin.
It held me captive, my eyes refusing to lose focus.
What is he doing?
He’s not…
No.
He can’t be…
Oh God…
The heat slithered along my inner thigh, the intent clear. And then it caressed my sensitive, damp flesh, inflaming my insides. “Titus…”
“No moving,” he repeated, having returned to his food preparations.
“But—” Fuck, that’s intense. I grabbed the counter to keep from falling over, or running, or jumping, I didn’t know. But that little flame circled my clit in the most dangerous kiss, calling my own fire out to play and creating an inferno in the last place I ever thought I’d desire it.
“Beautiful,” Titus praised, his green eyes burning with unrestrained desire. “But you need more, sweetheart. I want you so hot that you can’t see straight.”
I opened my mouth to protest, when the embers grazing my breasts whirled into fiery clamps that pinched my nipples. A scream left my throat, one born of fierce pleasure. Titus’s hand against my lower belly was all that kept me upright, my eyes glazing from the rapture his fire had unleashed on me.
“Don’t combust on me yet, Claire. I have plans for you.” He pushed me backward to prop me against the wall, then returned to his preparations while flames hummed over my skin, skirting over all the places I desired it most without providing any sort of relief.
“You’re killing me, Titus.”
“Good.” He threw everything into a bowl, then drizzled some kind of dressing over it. “You need to eat first.”
“Fuck food.”
He smirked. “I’ll fuck you after food, sweetheart. Trust me.” Heat sizzled between my legs, stroking me in a way that reminded me of his tongue and stirring stars behind my eyes.
This was nothing like the other fire play I’d experienced. This was hot and full of promise. One that equaled the very heavy erection barely concealed by the zipper of his pants.
Which gave me an idea.
Two could play this game.
I locked onto my elements—an action that was beginning to feel like second nature to me—and pulled my inclination for flames to the forefront.
Subtle, I whispered to the energy swirling inside. Let’s sweep over the jeans and incinerate in one warm wave.
Titus froze as my power rolled over him, eating through his pants in a thorough sweep and incinerating the fabric to ash. His boxers disintegrated with it, revealing his gorgeous cock.
His eyes narrowed. “Claire…”
“What?” I asked innocently, my flames dancing across his silky skin to form a grip around the base. He nearly dropped the bowl as I stroked upward with my mind.
“Fuck.”
Heat spiked in my center as he returned the sensual assault against my sex. I gripped the counter for balance, my vision blacking out for a moment, and then his lips were on mine.
Hungry.
Punishing.
Devouring.
I returned the ferocity in kind, nipping and sucking and moaning. My arms looped around his neck, my legs closing around his waist. He lifted me against him, then slammed my back into the wall beside the fridge, placing his erection right where I wanted it.
“Naughty little fae vixen,” he accused, his voice harsh. “You’re going to regret not letting me feed you first.”
I slid my center against his hardness and sighed, “I doubt it.” The last few weeks felt like unending foreplay. Yes, Exos and Titus had gotten me off—a lot—but not being able to return the favor had been the ultimate tease.
This was my first time seeing or feeling Titus bare down there.
And oh, how he didn’t disappoint.
I clawed at his shirt, needing him to be completely nude, and dropped it on the floor.
Solid muscle pressed against my curves. So hot. So strong. So mine.
The connection between us snapped into place without thought, a feeling of finality settling over me as Titus’s fire welcomed mine with open arms.
It sent a shudder through him.
Through me.
Through our bodies where they almost joined.
And then he was there, sliding home without warning and completing us on a level of existence foreign to us both.
His name left my tongue to travel over his, and he returned the favor, whispering words of worship out loud and directly into my mind.
What I felt with Exos was incredibly different from this. Still amazing. Still absolutely perfect.
Yet, Titus carried a note of finality, of unbridled promise for always, and I accepted him with a flourish. It felt right. Perfect. Absolute.
Oh, and the manner in which he moved within me… Mmm. My head fell back on a groan, the sensation of utter fulfillment thriving through my veins.
Titus’s lips fell to my neck, his hands roaming my sides, tweaking my breasts, memorizing every inch of my skin. My nails raked down his back, slipping back up to touch the tendrils of his thick auburn hair.
This was so much more than sex.
Passion fueled the air, our breaths mingling in hot pants, an inferno engulfing us both. But fuck if I could stop it. I let it overwhelm me, shoot me over the edge into a field of stars and light and bliss. A place where only Titus and I existed. An embrace overflowing with our kindled energy.
“Claire…” His mouth found mine again, his tongue a benediction against mine, his touch the life connection I craved.
The eruption building inside me seemed tied to him in an impossible way, as if I couldn’t explode without him. But his continued thrusts, his strokes, his ministrations, built a maelstrom of sultry power that vibrated through my limbs.
“Please,” I whispered, needing a release. He’d created this insanity, this blaze of ecstasy that lurked on the precipice of more.
His teeth sank into my lower lip, his hips driving harshly into mine.
Oh, there would be bruises.
My back bore the brunt of his force.
But my legs clamped even harder around him, begging him to increase his speed and drive even deeper.
And he did.
Oh, how he did.
I clutched his shoulders, my body screaming with the need to ignite.
One. Two. Three more…
“Titus,” I breathed, detonating from within into the hotte
st orgasm of my life.
Fire. Everywhere.
A sea of red and orange and some blue.
Amazing.
Overwhelming.
Consuming.
Titus joined me, the force of his eruption sending me into another state of being. Rapture unlike anything I’d ever felt poured over me, spiking my heart rate, cascading my vision into darkness, and sending me down a black hole of oblivion.
Something soft touched my back several seconds, minutes—hours?—later.
A warm voice cooed in my ear.
My heart thumped in time with another.
Complete. Mine. Fire mate.
Cool air flooded my lungs. Warm lips brushed my cheek. And a tear slid from my eyes. Home, I realized. I’m finally home.
But not in the home I thought I desired.
Not Ohio.
Not with humans.
But with my fire. With my Titus.
“I love you, too, Claire,” he whispered, his lips against my ear. I didn’t know if I claimed to love him out loud or if he gathered it from my mind. Either way, his resulting endearment made me smile. “Rest, sweetheart. I’ll bring you something to eat, and we’ll do that again.”
Yes, I thought back at him. Yes, please.
Exos
My lips curled. “Mmm, Claire’s happy.” I could almost taste her joy on my tongue, something that warmed me from the inside out.
Vox glanced at me, his hands loose at his sides as we walked. A natural warrior. He arched a brow. “She’s happy?”
“Yes.”
“You can feel her? Even from here?”
We were wandering the Air Quad, searching for the familiar energy signature. “I can always feel her,” I confessed. “Our spirits are intertwined.”
“And you’re not bothered by another male, uh, you know… making her happy?”
“Maybe at first,” I admitted. “But she has five elements. I can’t satisfy them all, and her fire calls to Titus.” As was evidenced by the fact that I’d just felt their very permanent bond snap into place. They’d skipped the second level entirely, landing squarely on the third.