Page 48 of How to Keep a Fae

I wish I could go back to hating her, or at least the indifference I pretended to return. But that time has passed. Questions linger. I want answers, but I’m also afraid to ask.

Why didn’t she tell me they were mated?

I saw August last night in my dreams. He was riding a horse through a forest. A blood-curdling cry erupted from either side of the path. A day later, I can still taste the fear of that sound. It felt so real, the forest scents, the warm air, the way his hair was a little longer than when I last saw it, curling around the collar of his armor. His sword slashed, blood arced, and his horse went down. I woke up, my nightgown clinging to my sweat-slick chest, my heart beating a wild tattoo.

Only a dream,I tell myself.It was only a dream.

But today is not one of the better days. Today, he is on my mind.

I hear footsteps outside the curtain. It has been mostly quiet, with the rest of the feeders heading for the day room. Dede tried her best to coax me from my nest. I wasn’t in the mood. All I want is to lay here, pretend to read my book, and wallow in memories of how it felt when August touched me.

I frown.

Did the footsteps stop, or did I simply not notice when they passed on?

The hairs at the back of my neck rise. I swallow. My heart rate elevates the way it does when I sense injury… when I am preparing to feed.

My prized naughty book drops carelessly to the floor. I launch myself out of my nest just as the curtain is thrust aside, and August steps in.

We crash together. His arms circle me, and he lifts me clear of the floor.

“August, August, August!” I pepper kisses over his cheeks, throat; anywhere I can reach, my fingers tangling in his hair, finding it longer… long enough to kiss the collar of his armor.

My head pops up. I’m breathing heavily but still don’t feel like I’m getting enough air. His pretty amber eyes carry pain as they search mine.

“You are injured.”

“It’s nothing?—”

“Do not nothing me,warrior.”

He shuts up and smiles, broad, making my heart skip a beat as I see his fangs, thinking about how they will feel when they pierce my throat. Goddess weep, he is so handsome, looking at him hurts.

“We were attacked this morning. But our mission was over, and my fa—the imperial called a portal.”

My mind skips over his slight pause and change of tact. He needs to feed. I tilt my head, offering him my vein, desperate for the sharp sting that will be followed by bliss… desperate for what comes after. Yesterday and tomorrow cannot touch my now. I just need him.

His head lowers, and his lips brush against my skin, teasing me—teasing us both. He groans, and his teeth sink in.

The sting is fleeting. I’m caught up in the hot surge of lust that sweeps through me as he drinks greedily of my blood. My fingers tighten in his hair, holding me to my throat. There is no higher purpose than to feed him and heal him like this.

His head lifts, and his lips crash against mine.

I taste my blood and madness in the kiss as he crushes me to him and holds me through the storm.

August

I carry her to her nest, kicking off my boots, my lips still locked upon hers. Her blood feels like it has gained power since I left. That small taste heals me and sends a heady wave of vitality crashing through me.

Maybe that is just her, my love, her love, and the being together again after so long.

I breathe in her sweet, familiar scent as I come down over her in the nest. She pushes me onto my back and moves to straddle. The nest feels… fuller. “Are there more cushions?—”

“Off,” she says. “All of it off.”

I grin, fumbling with the buckles on my armor. The moment it parts, she plants her small palms against my chest, caressing me all the way to my belt as I shuck out of the jacket and toss it to the floor.

“Hurry.”

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