Page 10 of Of Daggers and Deceit

He quirked his eyebrow at me and turned just as he opened the door to his room. “Do you think I’m stupid, Raya?”

My brows drew together, my lips pursed in confusion. “No?” More a question than an answer.

“You will be sleeping in my bed, Raya, with my arms wrapped around you, because I’m not running the risk of you even attempting to do something that is going to get you caught and punished.”

It was times like this that I resented my family knowing my power dragged them with me if they were touching me.

My eye ticked. “I’m not staying with you.”

It couldn’t happen. Friends didn’t do that. It was too close, and I was allowing too much. Lovers shared beds, not friends.

He smiled, a dark glint in his eye. Then, he moved forward quickly and picked me up, hugging me tight to his chest as he carried me into his room and placed us onto his bed, one arm around me. He pulled the covers up over us. I tried my best to bat him away, to hit and push off his body without fully injuring him, but he didn’t budge, his muscles firm and unrelenting.

I growled in frustration, and he chuckled, satisfied.

“Wherever you go, Raya, I will follow. So don’t try anything, not unless you want to get me punished too. I already have a life sentence serving on our Defence simply for waking up here with no memories. That is comparatively mild compared to whatever you intend to do. It would surely be my death sentence.”

I stilled because he was right. I’d remembered how he’d come to live with us, the day a beaten and battered teenager had shown up in the wasteland with no memories, an Alpha. A curious, broken, pink-haired shifter with dazzling eyes that reminded me of the amber pigments I worked with and a charming smile despite how broken his body had been.

I remembered how my mother had taken him in, how Zander, in his efforts to protect the Haven, had punished him to try and get him to explain how he arrived here. But he couldn’t remember.

Outrage rose again inside me, causing me to grip him tighter instead of pushing him away.

“I won’t do anything stupid, Bodhi.” I would never forget the day he arrived. I wouldn’t jeopardise his safety.

“Good,” he said, his hand moving across to rest against my stomach. I closed my eyes, though I was wide awake, my body entirely aware of his proximity. His soft lips pressed against my neck from behind, his firm body curling in closer. It felt comforting and safe, which caused a small sense of anxiety to flare inside me. It felt perfect. This moment was everything I had wanted to avoid; I never wanted to experience moments like this for a reason.

I would long for them when I didn’t have them, even more so If I took the risky leap towards him, enduring the risk of it fizzling out.

His breaths evened out shortly after, an indicator he was sound asleep. I kept my promise, and I didn’t move, even though I could have lifted his arms away from me.

I liked this.

Maybe for one night, I could allow myself to feel what a future solely with him could be like, to experience a future I could never truly risk, or else I ruin everything in my life that was good.

I tucked my body closer against him, taking whatever warmth I could and relishing this time between us, as it would likely be the last. I had to keep clear of sharing more moments like this with him.

For a Gifted like me, desperate to fit in, experiences like this were as dangerous as they were tempting.

RILEY

Ilooked in the mirror and gently flounced my freshly curled hair up, quickly scanning my face to ensure everything was even. My hands shook slightly as I pulled them away, and it was then I noticed how nervous I was about tonight.

Tonight felt critical.

I’d decided on more of a classic look: a fresh face of clean makeup, black winged eyeliner, thick mascaraed lashes, and a bold red lip. Even in the unpleasant lighting of my room, my eyes looked extra blue, offset by the paleness of my skin and my thick black hair. It was exactly the way Zander liked it.

A thrill of anticipation shot through me as I smoothed out the long, flowy white dress I had put on. It was the only shade I could ever wear as the purest resident in our entire city, according to our Goddess Omni. No other was allowed to wear it. That was Zander’s decree.

And it was something shifters city-wide had adhered to and never challenged.

I moistened my lips with a satisfied smile as I spied my reflection. I enjoyed appeasing Zander, liking the way he looked at me with adoration in his eyes. He made me feel special.

When he was with me, of course, which had become more occasional as of late. My smile dropped at the thought as I blinked at my reflection.

No. I wouldn’t think like that. Tonight was important, and he promised to spend a night just us two. This was what I had chosen when I became the Rose of this city, his Rose. He was a busy male, and when he was with me, he did give me all his attention.

My smile lifted, allowing excitement to take hold once again. It was our first date in some time, and I had plans to discuss some important issues I believed would build the city of our dreams. I needed him to see me as an equal, a leader in my own right.

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