Page 35 of Cursed

The magic she’d unleashed from the grimoire had weakened the spells on her door—but they had been enough to keep Lucian’s spies at bay, too? Or had he abandoned her to the grimoire’s power on purpose?

“Don’t think this changes anything, Bastian,” Avril shot back over her shoulder as she reached into the shower to turn on the water. She was trying to sound strong, but there was a tremor in her voice and her hand shook just a little.

Ah, sweet sister... It changes everything.

I leaned on the doorframe, one hand casually playing with a loose thread on my shirt cuff. “And what would that be?” I asked, my tone laced with faux innocence. But my gaze wasn’t innocent at all as it traced down the curve of her shoulder, where it disappeared into the robe that was barely clinging to her body.

“That we’re... that we’re just—”

“What?” I interjected. A wicked thrill shivered under my skin.

The taboo of it all only made it more exhilarating.

But was it really? Julia had barely been in the house long enough to consider her a part of the family…

Avril’s face twisted in distaste, and anger sparked in her hazel eyes as she spat, “You’re my step-brother!”

“And yet…” I drawled, my gaze drifting down once more, lingering over the slight swell of her breast visible from her undone robe before meeting her heated stare again. I tilted my chin at the shower. “Don’t waste the water.”

Avril’s lips pressed into a thin line and her hands hovered at the belt of her robe. “Turn around!”

I chuckled and didn’t move. “I don’t think so.”

“Turn. Around!”

“If I turn around, I’m leaving—”

Panic flashed across her face, and her jaw tightened. “Fine,” she growled.

“Good girl.”

Her hand shook as she untied the knot in the belt, and I kept my eyes on her as it dropped to the tile floor. She turned, and I snapped my fingers.

She froze.

“Ah, ah— no cheating.”

Her eyes burned with hatred and shame as she peeled the robe from her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. She was braless, and my tongue pressed against the roof of my mouth as I traced the sweet curve of her breasts with my eyes.

Gods, I wanted to taste her.

She kicked the robe away and hooked her thumbs into the edge of her filmy panties. Shame—and something else—flushed her cheeks as she pulled her panties down over her hips and thighs.

I watched as her body trembled beneath my gaze, and the way she bit down on her full bottom lip. Then, in one swift move, she kicked her panties at me, turned around, flipped me off, and jumped into the shower.

Steam covered the glass door, obscuring her from view, but I could still make out her tantalizing silhouette through the fogging glass.

“Fuck you, Bastian.” Her voice was muffled by the running water, but her tone was filled with anger.

I smirked. “That’s the idea, darling.”

“I bet it is,” she muttered, “you sick fuck.”

Her words didn’t bother me; I’d been called worse by better.

Instead, I took a moment to appreciate the tantalizing view in front of me.

My magic surged in my chest, and my cock responded. I’d missed watching her through her mirrors— Valen had laughed at me when she’d discovered what was happening and covered them. And I hadn’t been able to get through the sigils over her door since she’d moved into this suite… But that had been passive… easy voyeurism. This was different.

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