Page 40 of Beneath the Watching

Tugging the blanket from her chest I grabbed her leg and dragged her toward me, shoving her thighs open. “Mm,” I droned, rubbing the tip of my index finger over the red and purple welt. “Perfect.”

Mabel hissed and her muscles flexed as she tried to pull away. “That hurts.”

“No, not enough,” I rasped. Leaning over, I dragged my tongue against the wound and nipped at it. Her arm shot out, tangling in my hair as she fruitlessly attempted to push me away.

“Stop that,” she mumbled and kicked at me with her other leg.

“Good morning,” I laughed. Tossing the covers away, I got out of bed feeling her eyes rake over my nakedness. Sure enough, the sweet pungent scent of her arousal began to fill the atmosphere. “Do you need help with that?” I swiveled my head and held her in place with my gaze, licking my lips.

“I’m thirsty,” she replied.

“Me too, beauty.”

A look of caution covered her expression. “Why do I feel like we’re talking about two different things?”

“Because we are,” I confirmed. I bent over and kissed her—hard. My pulse increased when I remembered the danger I was in because this woman had the power to break me.

Because I’d endangered her and myself in multiple ways, nothing would ever be the same.

And today I had to go to the High Court, leaving her without the benefit of my protection.

Running a hand through my hair, I backed away from her. “Get up, we have things to discuss.”

Mabel slid out of bed with the blanket held in front of her precious body. Annoyed, I whipped it away from her, receiving yet another yelp that reminded me of the night before.

I sighed and handed her the outfit she’d had on, before the evening gown. I had to move my thoughts away from the pleasures of the flesh or I’d get nothing done. “Get dressed,” I directed her.

“Can we discuss how I started hearing voices? And the music I hear sometimes, too.” She paused, thoughtfully. “I haven’t heard the music for a while.”

I waited for her to finish putting her clothes on. “Yes. First, get ready for the day and then meet me in the receiving room.”

Mabel met me as instructed. While she was in the shower, I traveled back to her home in the Third Realm and made note of her preferences. I gave the list to my men when I returned and sent them off.

It appeared she had a penchant for baking odd and unique creations involving baby food, so I included extras with what I wanted my men to retrieve. The written instructions I handed Benjamin and Jack also included clothing and toiletries.

I’d grabbed fruit from the kitchen for her and she sat in what I’d come to think of as her spot on the sofa. She consumed the food while I paced back and forth. My mind was in chaos, battling my own self-protective walls while knowing she was my responsibility. If I was going to successfully keep her, I needed to get over my hang-ups and not just fight her own.

Halting, I said, “Tell me how you discovered us. How you started visiting the Fourth Realm. All of it.” She blanched. I hadn’t realized I’d practically barked at her and quickly tried to soften my features.

“Okay,” she replied quietly.

Mabel went on to give me what must’ve been every detail. Listening in fascination, it seemed she’d partaken in a vision of some sort. She’d been there for the pivotal moment Kiara made her return to the Fourth Realm after some ill-fated arrangement with Ilya only he and I knew about. I’d never heard of such a thing occurring before; shared visions of the Fourth Realm. That revelation would remain private between her and I.

“I heard the voice again last night, when we were at that thing where Ilya took Kiara. It said ‘Change. Change is coming.’ Why am I hearing that?”

Before I answered her, I let out a deep breath. “I don’t know but it seems redundant. We already know everything is changing.”

“What about the music? That must be a part of the voice, right?”

Such a thing was unheard of, the disembodied music. Not once had I ever read about it or had someone mention it. “I’ve never heard of that before but that would be my best guess.” She let out a deep breath and pressed her lips together.

I lowered myself into one of the armchairs. “You said that bottle reappeared?” She nodded. “It sounds like the same stuff some of the men drink occasionally. They get a sort of ‘high’ from it.”

Mabel considered my words for several seconds. “Do you think because I got some in my mouth it somehow activated a latent ability? I’ve never heard voices before in my life. Or seen a vision.”

“Perhaps.” I pinched the bridge of my nose and closed my eyes before reopening them. “Or maybe something Kiara did could’ve transferred to you. If she’d disturbed something, or something clicked at just the right moment, and you were close enough to her.”

Mabel began peeling a banana. “That’s kinda scary. What’s going to happen to us? I want to help her.”

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