Page 27 of Taste of Danger

Suddenly, the vibrant colors coalesced into delicate wings that seemed to defy reality as they emerged even through the material of her shirt and began to flutter gracefully.

All of this occurred in mere seconds, leaving Jax awestruck.

Elvine rose toward the ceiling, a deep scowl on her face. “It’s not nice to make fun of people, Mr. Nippy Nose. Words hurt.”

Jax frowned. “How did your wings go right through your shirt without damaging anything?”

“Don’t try to change the subject.” She folded her arms, and now Jax wanted to see her flying around their room naked.

“But we’ve been correcting you from day one, buttercup,” Jax argued, forcing the image of his mate flying naked out of his head.

“And I ignored everyone’s razzing,” she replied. “But now that we’re mates, it hurts even more that you poke fun of me.”

“Baby, come here.”

She paced back and forth in the air. She’d done that once before, when she’d found out Raidh’s father had paid vampires to kill his own son. But that night she had actually made the house shake.

“How can you do that?” Arion wiggled his finger at her. “Pace in the air? Aren’t you afraid you’ll trip and fall?”

Jax furrowed his brows at Arion. “She’s got wings. How is she going to trip and fall in the air?”

“So now you’re poking fun at me?” Arion asked but turned slightly and winked at Jax.

He had no idea what that wink was for. If he argued with Arion—even in jest—Jax would still end up the bad guy.

“How did our night turn from fucking to fighting?” Jax was utterly confused. Elvine had never shown any signs that their good-natured ribbing bothered her. If she had, everyone would have immediately stopped. The Frosts weren’t cruel men. They lived by a code, which was to always help, never harm.

Except when some asshole needed to die. Then they banded together and threw down.

“I was very sheltered,” Elvine argued. “The Sparklenests are considered lower class, which means we were treated like second-rate citizens.”

Jax wanted to correct her, to tell her it was second-class citizens, but he was wise enough to keep his mouth shut.

“Isn’t it second—”

He clamped a hand over Arion’s mouth. “Not a good time, pumpkin.” Then he looked up at Elvine, removing his hand from Arion. “I’m sorry, babe. I’m not up to speed on Unseelie politics.”

She stopped pacing and slammed the side of her fist against her palm. “If you don’t have money and prestige, you’re basically filth!”

“Sweetheart, please calm down.” Jax felt the floor vibrate under his feet. How was she doing that without chanting a spell or something?

“Is she making the room tremble?” Arion whispered to him.

“She’s done it before,” Jax replied. “I think it happens when she’s really pissed off.”

“So my parents kept a close eye on me, afraid I might be harmed because of our static,” Elvine continued as if she hadn’t been interrupted.

Status, Jax thought.

Then she glared at him, and Jax had an overwhelming urge to take a step back. “So, forgive me if I haven’t had a proper education or picked up on human turns of phrase as well as everyone else has. I like my life, Jax. I love my family, and I’m glad we don’t have to act like those pompous blowhearts.”

Blowhards.

“We have fun, our gatherings have given me so many good memories, and I like my simple life.” She swiped away her angry tears, and all Jax wanted to do was hold her. “Raidh was born with privilege, but he has always treated me and my family like they were his own. He’s spent centuries teaching me how to wield magic that is only taught to those shmarmies.”

Yeah, Jax had no clue what that word was.

“We’re all born with magical abilities, but you have to be taught how to use them. Before Raidh started giving me lessons, I only knew basic, trivial spells, like how to clean my room without even chanting.” She snapped her fingers, and Jax glanced around, but he didn’t see any changes.

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