Page 26 of Petals for Vicious Secrets

She could see it in Ayla’s eyes too. She felt the mark permanently inked between her breasts. The four-petal panom and Thyrian mark.

Lenna and Ayla were not two human beings anymore. They were golden and silver light. They were panoms.

15

Lenna

Lenna stared across the room to the Rulers sitting in a corner of the luxurious salon of the Organ House. Despite the fact they had been talking for over thirty long minutes, some of them appeared to be struggling to keep their voices down and their emotions under control. Maybe some fun was about to start.

“Why are you so serious, golden girl?” said a masculine voice next to her. Lenna didn’t have to look to know it was the Organ Mandor’s son, Jake Coralt. The one who had kindly offered her to go discarding and his cock in the same conversation.

“It’s my face to keep arrogant smartasses away,” she said with a lip-shut smile, not bothering to look at the handsomeness that appeared to be in his mid-thirties. She took a long sip of her sparkling orange drink.

He laughed. “You amuse me.”

Lenna took a deep breath. Surely her birthday and the day of her Fifth Ceremony was not the best day to make a scene, even to her low threshold standards. Plus, she was just not in the mood. She just wanted to learn about her magic and explore how to use it. And see Theon and finish whatever it was that they didn’t finish that morning. Yes. She definitely also wanted that.

As the Rulers, even talking more intensely than before, didn’t seem to be about to start an entertaining argument, and since this man next to her didn’t seem to plan to move somewhere else soon, Lenna put her glass down and walked outside the room through one of its many corridors. Maybe she could find a peaceful spot outside to wait until they could go back to the waholt.

She was not even halfway through the marble corridor when she heard quick steps behind her.

“Not so fast, molten honey,” Jake said.

Lenna stopped dead where she was. “Never call me that again,” she said, her fingers curling, her jaw clenching.

He reached where she was standing and stepped in front of her, blocking her way to the end of the corridor. “I like how tense you get, sweetheart. I’m sure we could find a way to release all that tension.”

“Kicking you in these balls that are obstructing my way would release some of my tension,” she stared at him. “I’m more than happy to try.”

“So fiery, Brachyan,” Jake chuckled, a corner of his lips twisting upward. “Your dress suits you, by the way. It leaves no space to my imagination.”

Lenna was fully aware of every single curve the dress wrapped as tightly as a second skin. From her full breasts to her well-rounded hips, including her slightly narrower waist. She took a deep breath and stepped next to Jake to continue walking through the corridor. “Dream away,” she said.

“We could do many things together”, he said, looking at her from above, stepping in front of her again. “So many things.”

Lenna knew her patience’s end was just inches away. “Keep your efforts of an impressive superior man act for someone who might appreciate it,” she spat. “My sister would enjoy listening to you.”

Lenna felt a small part of herself flinching at her comment. The moment with Ayla before the Fifth Ceremony had been beautiful, yes. And the connection she had felt while becoming a panom next to her had meant something special. But that didn’t change how her sister was. It didn’t change how much Ayla would love to be with someone of a status like Jake’s. It didn’t get any better than being the heir of the Organ House and therefore the future supreme Ruler of Thyria. Ayla would be thrilled with that.

Jake smiled, his silver-pearl eyes shining with amusement, stepping even closer to her. “I told you once. Where would the fun be in that?”

She would not back down. “I see. So women have to be fun to entertain your asshole majesty? So old-fashioned, Jake.”

“You know exactly what I mean. Don’t twist my words around,” he said, lifting his hand to her clenched jaw with his finger. His position reminded her too much of the moment with Theon only four hours before.

“Don’t you fucking touch me,” she said firmly, grabbing his wrist with her hand, stopping it in the air.

“Or what, sweet fire?” he said, letting out a breath that made Lenna realize how disgustingly close he was to her face.

“Or your balls will end up nailed to the wall.” She twisted his hand around in a swift movement that made him let go.

“You don’t learn, Jake,” Ciaran’s lower voice said with a serious face. She hadn’t heard Ciaran approach them, and by Jake’s halt, it looked like he hadn’t either. Ciaran nodded to Lenna, “I see you have this asshole under control.”

Lenna shook her hands as if that would be any help to get rid of the anger in her body at the entitlement of the man. “What a waste of space he is,” she muttered between her teeth.

Jake didn’t take long to stand tall and have his know-it-all look back on his face. “We were only talking about having some fun, Ciaran. Care to join us? I’d love to play with the North House hot heir and the West House cold heir at the same time.” He winked with a smile that didn’t meet his eyes.

Ciaran blatantly ignored him, silently inviting Lenna to walk with him towards a side corridor. She went to follow him, but her body slammed against an invisible wall between her and Ciaran. Lenna turned to see Jake holding an open hand in front of him. She opened her mouth—

---