Page 49 of Stroke of Shadows

“Get in the car, Starlight.”

Harper blinked, but she remained exactly where she was.

Sythe moved faster than he should have, her gasp a burst of warmth as he crowded her against the wall. “Don’t test me right now,” he rumbled, dropping his head closer to hers. “You won’t like what happens.”

Instead of shrinking from the weight of his threat, she straightened her spine, the earlier distress dwarfed by anger. “I think you’ve forgotten who you’re speaking to.”

Sythe smiled as he placed each palm flat on the bricks beside her head, careful not to touch her. “Have I?”

One taste. That would sate the fucking thirst he had for her. Just one…

No. He immediately squashed the urge to tangle his fingers in her hair and claim her mouth roughly and without apology. He could imagine it too, the way he’d catch her angry gasp and then swallow her resulting moan.

She lifted her chin in a subtle show of defiance, and his beast purred. Fucking purred. Her eyes widened a fraction from the vibration in his chest.

Fuck.

He was seconds from losing control.

Sythe pushed himself away from the wall, needing to create space between them.

“We’ve already established I’m not the good guy here, darling. I helped as a favour to your cousin, not because I give a shit about what happens to you.” He hardened his tone, guilt searing through his centre like a knife. “Now get in the car, Miss Beauchamp. I won’t ask again.”

If her complexion was pale before, it was ghostly now.

That’s it, Starlight. Hate me.

“You’re a…” Her mouth opened, the rest of her words lost. The anger that had burned so brightly dimmed, her eyes glassing over. She gasped for breath, and Sythe caught her as she sagged.

“Harper?” A tingling against his chi, her body limp in his arms. Fear sharpened in her gaze once more, and Sythe cupped her cheek. “Harper?”

Her skin was hot to the touch.

Fuck.

Pulling her into his arms, her head rolled against his chest.

“You’re okay,” he reassured her, ignoring the biting dread. “I’m here, darling. You’re going to be okay.”

Her mouth moved, but no sound came out before her eyes fluttered closed. Another tingle against his chi, and panic surged, pure ice that skimmed along the nape of his neck.

He felt wild magic.

Which meant she wasn’t entirely human.

Chapter 18

Sythe

He watched her chest rise and fall with every breath, like a crazed stalker.

What the fuck was I doing? he thought, dragging a hand over his face. Exhaustion beat heavily against him, his arm aching beneath the tight fabric he kept wrapped around it.

Hours he’d waited for her to wake. Night had fallen, and with it, the increasing urgency to get her home before anyone became suspicious of her whereabouts. It had been a stupid idea to bring her to his place, but it had been instinct. The Beauchamps may be family by blood, but there was no loyalty tying them together.

He’d spent enough time roaming the halls of the estate, memorising the security team’s schedule, as well as researching every single member of staff that had access to the main house. It was a shockingly small list, and while he was sure they’d all been vetted before gaining access, he couldn’t trust them to take care of her.

Fuck. He couldn’t even trust her to take care of herself.

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