by Scott, Helen
“Holy shit, Raven was right,” he breathed.
“Right about what? And how did we get here? The last thing I remember was being in the forest with all of you and feeling . . .,” I trailed off not knowing how to describe what I'd felt. I rubbed my eyes while I hoped he’d answer my questions and ignore the fact I never finished my thought. Everything about me was feeling sensitive, my eyes more so than anything else, especially after the adjustment from dark to bright light to dark again.
“You're a shadow-weaver.” He gulped and those beautiful eyes were trained on me once more, only this time they didn't stay on my face. His gaze slipped down my body, taking in every inch of me as he stood less than a foot away.
Everything in me grew tight, and all I wanted was to press myself up against him once again. I wanted it more than I wanted answers, more than my curiosity demanded to know what a shadow-weaver was. I'd certainly never heard of it before.
“We need to get that nullifying spell off of you,” Cade said suddenly. The slight panic in his voice made me feel as though I was free falling.
“Why? Cade, how did we get here?” I asked again, trying to quell my own anxiety.
“You moved us here.” He took a breath and paused before rushing on, so I couldn't get distracted by the first part. “If we don't get that spell off of you soon though, your full powers could be damaged,” he grated as he rubbed the stubble that was starting to show on his jaw. The short blond hairs made a scratching noise against his hand, which was much easier for me to focus on instead of what he'd just said. That? That I couldn't think about, not yet, at least.
“I'll go shower,” I muttered as I tried to squeeze past Cade.
My room wasn't big enough for him, hell, it was barely big enough for me. Just as I reached for the door, he stopped me, gently curving his fingers over my shoulder in a way that made me want to melt.
“Are you just going out there naked?” he growled the question at me.
“It wouldn't be the first time, and probably won't be the last, either,” I said. When he raised an eyebrow, I explained, “My clothes and towels have a habit of wandering away while I'm in the shower.” I could swear his lip twitched with anger, but I could easily be imagining things at this point.
I had gone well past the twenty-four hour mark with no sleep and barely any food, or blood for that matter, so it was entirely possible.
“I'll stand guard,” he grunted before nodding to the towel I had hanging on the back of my door. I ignored the implied request and left the towel hanging there. It was either that or watch it disintegrate when it touched my skin, and I didn’t have money to waste on buying a new towel.
I took a step toward him. “You can't be seen,” I hissed at him, poking him in the chest with my finger for good measure. “If they know you're here then I'll get punished. They could even take me out of the running to be your Sixth!” He opened his mouth to respond, but I jumped in again, “I don't want to hear an argument. You're going to stay here while I shower, then we are going to sneak you out so no one ever finds out you were on this floor.”
“How do you know they won't just find you again?” he asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.
For a moment, I couldn't respond, the need to reach out and touch him was riding me hard. I needed to get out of the room before I straight up attacked him. My eyes wouldn't come unglued from his chest, though. I mentally snorted at that. I thought it was supposed to be the other way around, guys being obsessed with boobs and all that. Yet, here I was, unable to look away from firm pectorals and rounded biceps. The man could probably bench press me if he wanted to, and I was no lightweight. Sure, I had a petite frame, but I had plentiful curves. Curves he hadn't ogled in the slightest. Maybe he just wasn't as attracted to me as I was to him. The thought soured my stomach and prompted me into action.
“If they find me, I'll scream, and you can play knight in shining armor. How does that sound?” I asked, wrenching my eyes up to meet his own.
Amusement danced in Cade's eyes and he just nodded. Finally, the tension between us broke as he turned away from me. I grabbed my towel, so I had something to wrap around myself after the shower and left. I glanced over my shoulder as the door swung shut and saw him sliding a sleek matte black phone from his pocket, the screen lighting up as he touched it. When the click of the latch sounded, I refocused and headed to the showers.
Being out of his presence, as well as away from the other guys, made me feel more vulnerable than ever before, weaker even.
I wasn't sure what that glowing gold light was, or why he claimed I had moved us here when I could never have done such a thing, especially since illusion magic didn’t come with a side of teleportation. I'd get answers from him, I knew that, but this needed to wait until I'd dealt with the spell Lily had dumped on me. Literally.
I had only made it a few feet down the hall when pain ripped through my chest, forcing me to my knees. My breath slowed as I had practiced so many times and I relaxed into the feeling. Handling pain was almost second nature to me, but this was different. I felt like an elastic band that had been stretched too far, and part of me was willing to accept the ricochet that was building within me, but the rest of me was as stubborn as an ox.
When I was able to right myself once more, I tried to continue on to the showers, but every step was like walking into a wall of knives, each one piercing my sternum until I was back on the floor once again. This time, when I got up, the pain eased, and I felt less like I was about to be ripped in two. When I looked around it was only to confirm something my body had already told me. Cade was there, walking up as casual as anything. He scooped me up and continued down the hall until I pointed to the bathrooms.
As we entered, I sent a silent thank you to the Maker that it was empty, although I would have been more surprised to find anyone in there this early.
The cream tile floor was squeaky clean under his heavy boots—I knew because I used to be the one cleaning it at four in the morning.
The bathroom itself was divided into two sections, one had the toilet stalls and sinks, and the other included the shower stalls and the flimsy excuse for curtains that covered them.
I preferred the corner stall in the back, since it meant only sharing one wall instead of two. As I walked over, I knew Cade was right behind me. When I glanced over my shoulder he wasn’t paying any attention to me, though, his gaze was scanning the room as though he was expecting Lily to jump out from one of the stalls at any moment. I tried not to pay attention to him, to just go about my routine, but it was almost impossible.
Feeling awkward, I hung my towel on the hook between the shower stalls and turned the water on, stepping in as I saw steam start to rise.
“So, are you going to tell me what happened to me back there? It's clear you know, or at least, suspect something,” I questioned, as the water warmed my skin and I began to shampoo the spell and the remnants of the woods out of my hair, before I removed the rest from my body with a thick lather of soap.
Nullifying spells were amazingly effective, but they were ridiculously simple to deactivate. The key was to get the null away from a shower, or any body of water really, so they couldn’t wash off the spell. Back in the old days, that had been far more difficult than it was today.
“I'm honestly not sure what just happened, not until I talk to my brothers about it, but I think it's best that we stick together for a while. If you don't want me hanging around, then I can always grab Barclay or Gideon, or Raven, even Keiran if you want,” he said quietly.
I couldn't help but wonder if having one of the others babysit me would be better, even though I knew on a gut level that it would hurt Cade's feelings—not that he'd ever admit it.
Maybe I wouldn't be drawn to the others as much?
The thought crossed my mind, but was swiftly followed by the memory of a half-naked Barclay helping me with the obstacle course, Raven giving me his blood, and a sweating Gideon running in front of me. Even K
eiran, with his beautiful eyes, had watched me in a way that had my skin prickling with goosebumps.
It didn't matter who was with me, I was equally attracted to all of them, and the only difference was that Cade had been the only one to kiss me.
The memory of his lips against my own, his strong, powerful hands on my body, all rushed to the surface and left me feeling more needy than ever before. Cade cleared his throat on the other side of the curtain, and I tried to rein in my thoughts, like I was worried he could read them or something. He wasn't the mind-walker of the group, though, so I shouldn't have had anything to worry about, not that I thought Raven would ever intrude without reason. It wasn't like being a walker, of any variety, was a walk in the park.
Laughter echoed through the door a moment before it pushed open, and I recognized the voices of a few of the girls in the year below me. Without missing a beat, Cade stepped into my shower stall and hunkered down as much as he could against the back wall, so his head didn't stick out above the curtain. I couldn't help the surprised noise that broke free from my lips.
“Is someone in here?” one of the girls called. What was her name? Angela? Anna? I was pretty sure it began with A, not that it mattered.
“Yep, just taking a shower,” I called back. They really should have been more aware of their surroundings. It wasn't like the water in my stall wasn't turned on full blast.
“Oh, okay,” she called back, before the whispering between them commenced.
I listened for a moment as they went to the other side of the bathroom, clearly wanting privacy for some reason. When I gave in and looked through the spray of water from the shower I saw Cade watching me, his eyes hungrily traveling over my body as though he'd never seen it before. My breath caught in my throat as his eyes met mine, heavily-lidded and lust-filled. The water was pounding against him, slicking his t-shirt against his skin and showcasing his powerful thighs through his wet jeans. My mouth turned dry at the sight, and I whispered, “Sorry you're getting soaked.”
Cade just shrugged and grabbed my hand with his own, tugging me forward to meet him, face-to-face. His lips crashed against mine, and I immediately surrendered to my need to connect with him. I looped my arms around his neck, clasping my fingers over his soft skin of his nape, while his tongue invaded my mouth. His hands gripped my hips like a vice as though he was terrified of me moving closer, but equally scared of me pulling away.
I couldn’t help but sigh as I inched toward him, wanting to be as connected to him as possible. A snorted giggle from the other side of the bathroom reminded me that we weren’t alone. I went to pull away, but Cade’s hands simply slipped from my hips to my back, as he almost hugged me to him. I pulled back just enough to stare into his eyes that were as blue as the ocean. What I found there wasn't just lust, it was a need that went deeper, one which resonated with my own.
My hands drifted from behind his neck to cup his face, holding him with a tenderness that surprised even myself. When I moved to kiss him again, it wasn't the clash of frantic need that it had been, this time it was slower, more sensual.
Cade pushed up to standing and took me with him, spinning us around, so he had me pinned against the wall. My legs instinctively wrapped around him, pulling him even closer to my body. When he moaned quietly between kisses, the sound shot straight to my core. Need consumed me then, and I pushed up to claim his lips once more.
He denied me. His hand gripped my chin before I could reach him. Gently, he turned my head to the side and began raining kisses on the sensitive flesh of my neck. I couldn't remember the last time someone had voluntarily touched me before the brotherhood came to the Academy. My very soul felt starved for the attention, and my skin was greedily soaking up every caress.
When his hand released my chin and slid down to cup my breast he paused, as though waiting for me to react, to push him away. I nodded frantically, and he nipped the skin right on the curve of my neck before moving lower, over my collarbone. I gasped each time his teeth scraped against me, twitching and rolling my hips in an instinctual way, as my body demanded I connect with him. His clothes were in the way, and just as I started to pull up on the wet fabric of his t-shirt, his fingers found my nipple.
At first they just skimmed over the sensitive nub, which made me shudder against him and my head roll back as much as it could. Once he noticed my reaction, though, he rolled it between his fingers, almost making me moan. Instead, I bit my lip so hard I drew blood. My eyes flew open as I realized what had happened, only to find Cade's pupils dilating as he watched me with a hunger that was different from his lust.
I gulped air before I said, “I've never . . .”
“I know,” he whispered in my earlobe before biting it, sending a wave of shivers over my skin.
“I want to . . .”
Cade's eyes were inches from my own as he looked at me. “I know, but I'm not going to take your maidenhead in a shower stall,” he growled quietly.
“We should go back to my room, anyway, before the rest of the dorm wakes up,” I whispered, nerves filling me when I couldn't remember if I'd heard the other girls leave or not.
In one smooth motion, he spun around and placed my feet on the ground, directly under the spray of water.
“Lead the way, little thunderbolt.” He grinned.
I rinsed my hair once more and made sure there was no more soap on my body, well, as much as I could since I was sharing the small space with a mountain of a man. His watchful gaze tracked my hands over my skin, and I couldn't resist teasing him slightly, as my hands cupped my breasts and gave them a quick squeeze before one smoothed its way down my stomach and slipped between my legs.
“You're testing my resolve, aren't you?” Cade groaned as he stepped into my personal space, crowding me and practically forcing me out of the shower.
“Who? Me?” I smiled wickedly up at him.
He stared at me a minute, his response dulled. Before I could feel self-conscious, I realized he was listening to make sure the hallway was clear of any other women. “Let's go,” he said gruffly, but the raging fire in his eyes warmed me from the inside out.
Without hesitation I grabbed the towel and wrapped it around myself, satisfied that it didn’t turn to dust on contact. The two of us scampered down the hall to my room. Well, I scampered, he squelched. We made it without anyone seeing or, hopefully, hearing us. As soon as the door latched behind us, Cade was peeling the wet fabric from his skin. Once his chest was bare to me, he started doing the same with his pants, slipping his phone out of his pocket as he did so.
“Oh, no! Is your phone okay?” I asked, thinking about how soaked it must have been in the shower.
“Yeah, it's got a water repellent charm on it, so it's fine.” He leaned to the side and set it on my desk after tapping out a quick message. “I asked the guys to send some dry clothes over when they’re back.”
I nodded and perched on the edge of my bed, unsure about what we were doing. When his hands went to the waistband of his boxers in my peripheral vision, I couldn't help but turn and watch. Cade's powerful thighs and strong arms were only accentuated by his flat stomach and the ridges of muscle by his hips. His cock jutted out, standing proudly now that it was free from the constraints of his boxers, and my mouth went dry. He wasn't a small man, and his manhood was more than proportionately sized, but I was a virgin, and that made it more than a little terrifying.
Cade must have seen it in my eyes because he chuckled and said, “Don't worry, little thunderbolt, I'll only use this when you're ready.” His hand wrapped around his shaft in emphasis, and I barely stopped myself from drooling. Sure, it was bigger than I had expected, but damn if it wasn't impressive. I squeezed my thighs together to try and find some relief from the need that was throbbing in my core. Within seconds, he'd released his cock and was kneeling in front of me, so we were eye level with each other.
“Say the word, and I'll stop at any point. You're in control here,” he whispered to me, and my heart s
welled with an unnamed emotion.
His lips were on mine a moment later, and all the longing I'd felt over the last few weeks since the brotherhood had shown up at Westbrook came roaring back to the surface. I tried to climb onto his lap, my towel a forgotten clump on the bed behind me, but Cade just slipped his hands under my ass and picked me up, laying me on the bed, with him pressing deliciously down on top of me. His body was already warm and dry unlike mine, which was still damp to the touch and chilled.
My heart thudded within me as his mouth traveled from my own and down my neck to clamp around one of the hard peaks of my nipples. His hot, wet lips and swirling tongue had my body writhing under him. When his teeth scraped against the skin of one nipple, and his fingers toyed with the other, I felt like I was about to lose my damn mind. This didn't feel like something casual anymore. It wasn't a wham, bam, thank you ma'am type of deal, this, whatever it was, was real.
Cade's mouth moved down my belly, and he gently parted my quivering legs, kissing the flesh of my inner knee and working up to the apex of my thighs, before repeating the gesture.
His fingers drifted over my sex, hard enough to not tickle, but light enough that it was still teasing. My breath was coming in great gasps as I waited for him to take the next step. He didn't push a finger into me, though, instead he simply parted my folds and circled my clit with his thumb.
“You're so fucking wet,” he murmured, sounding awestruck.
He slipped a finger along my entrance, and I could feel what he was talking about as he spread it around. When he pushed a finger into me slightly, I couldn't stop the moan that had been building inside me from escaping. I wanted more, needed more, of him, of all of them. The desire was a fire raging within me, one that I wouldn't be able to fully quench for a while, not without all of them present. My hips rolled toward his hand, thrusting his finger deeper within me, when a second one joined it, I moaned again as I felt fuller than I'd ever been before.
When his thumb circled my clit at the same time, it only took a couple of passes, and I felt like I was standing at the edge of a cliff, ready to fly off the edge.