Page 36 of The Daughters of Nyx

But I’d fucked that up with the vision, and now, I wasn’t sure how to act around her. I wasn’t sure if she did, either. Ivy was polite the last two times we’d run into one another, but she’d avoided my eye both times. I couldn’t tell if she was uncomfortable or not. I’d thought we’d had something, a spark that ignited both of us, and now I wasn’t so certain she was feeling it anymore.

Or if she was, she didn’t want to let it out.

I still felt like a fucking fool for the way I’d acted outside her apartment. I’d been so stunned seeing her that I hadn’t used my fucking brain.

My jaw clenched as I glared down at my hands, marked by little scars from years of training with my mother’s guards. They had been parents more than she ever had. The old Seer wasn’t maternal, and I sometimes wondered why she’d had a child in the first place. It had to be because of some vision. That was the only reason I’d accept at this point.

Her magic ran through my veins, and that’s what I blamed for my inability to get close to Ivy. I wanted to see that beautiful smile again, but was it too late for that?

I almost startled when I heard her soft moan. It carried from her bedroom window thanks to a spell to alert us if someone crossed the threshold, but I froze as she cried out in pleasure again. My cock hardened at the sound.

I knew no one else was in there with her. It was almost four in the morning, so she shouldn’t even be awake. From what we knew, she’d had a late shift at the hotel, and later, she’d be leaving her apartment for whatever awriting retreatwas—or so she’d told Adrian.

Is she having a sex dream?I almost smiled to myself. Who was she fantasizing about? Which one of us was she seeing in her dreams?

Adjusting my pants, I waited for another sound, and was met with a soft whimper. Fuck, she sounded amazing. What would she sound like on my cock as I fucked her? Would she scream my name or mewl like a kitten with each stroke of my cock?

“Your shift is over.”

I turned and shoved my hands into my pockets. Wolfy stood behind me, his eyes blank. I glanced back up at her window, which now had soft, golden light streaming from between the cracks in her curtains.

“Have fun,” I replied with a shrug.

Elias stopped me before I could make it to the door. “Did anything happen?”

“Nothing at all,” I lied. Like I was going to bring up Ivy’s little dream adventure.

The wolf stared at me for a moment before nodding, turning his attention to the streets. I could almost see his beast clawing at the surface, pacing within him, begging for release. As much as he annoyed me, I felt almost bad for him. This wasn’t one of our cities, so there was nowhere safe for him to shift. He had to keep a tight leash on himself, and if

he was reacting to Ivy like Adrian and I, then he was probably in a hell of a lot of pain.

But that was none of my business. I left him to the shadows of the apartment and made my way up the five flights of stairs to our hall. I couldn’t hear anything inside Ivy’s apartment, but as I slipped into my own, I was faced with Maeve, who stared at me for a moment, eyes red with a recent feeding.

The idea of blood bags in our fridge should have made me nauseous, but I’d lived with vamps for three years when I’d attended Oberon Academy. At least Maeve got rid of the bags properly, unlike my old roommates.

“Nothing exciting to report, boss,” I said as I crossed to mine and Adrian’s bedroom. “Elias has taken over, and I’m going to crash.”

Maeve nodded, returning to whatever report she’d been looking at. One thing that definitely weirded me out: Changed vamps didn’t sleep. I’d roomed with two born bloodsuckers and they lived like most other people, but being changed was a whole other ordeal.

Slipping into the bedroom, I eyed Adrian’s sleeping form in the bed across from mine. He didn’t stir as I crossed to the closet and pulled out sweats and a t-shirt, and didn’t make a sound as I slipped back out to use the bathroom. The door locked behind me as I flicked on the overhead yellow light. I caught my reflection in the mirror and stopped. The tops of my cheekbones were red, and despite the walk up to the apartment, my cock was still hard and straining against my jeans.

I stared at myself for a moment longer before shaking my head. If I could just have one taste of her, would that put a stop to all of this, or make it worse?

Would sinking my cock into her tight pussy alleviate some of this pressure, or would I become addicted to the feel of her?

Would I be able to give her up once we returned her to her rightful place?

I shook my head and gripped the sides of the sink.No.If I gave in, I would want everything, and that was something I couldn’t have. She was going to be the fucking Queen, and the only way I’d be able to stay close to her would be if I took over my mother’s place as advisor.

But I knew I wouldn’t be able to stay close to her and never feel her again.

Fucking fate. Fucking Nyx.

I pushed away from the sink and stripped. Turning on the shower, I stared blankly at myself in the mirror. A new resolve played within my mind, one that threatened any hope of happiness I might have.

I had to stay away from Ivy. No emotions attached. I would play my part and get her to the island, but after that, I would stay away. Maybe after a while, these feelings would die, and I’d see her as nothing more than our Queen.

But until then, I would shut down any possibility of happiness between us.

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