Page 54 of The Coveted
Let go? That sounded like something I didn’t want to do. But I couldn’t remember why.
I found myself on a silky pale blue carpeted floor, the ceiling above tall with golden arches and a dark, painted scene of storm clouds, forest, and dancing witches. The warmth and crackle of a fireplace caught my attention to our left, and a servant quickly brought us elixir. I managed to remember to abstain.
Jasmine and Christine giggled at an inside joke as their dates watched them hungrily. A small, blonde woman wearing nothing but pink, lacy lingerie had somehow made it into our fold along the way, whispering to Taryn seductively. Erotic, ambient music filled the space as we sat in our huddle.
“How’d you do it?” Christine suddenly blurted, cocking her head and eyeing me. Her energy mirrored the thunder clouds in the ceiling painting above: electric, potent, and shooting sparks.
I didn’t realize I was smiling until her words made me frown. “Do what?” I felt Sebastian’s hand on my thigh, separated from my skin by only the thinnest of translucent fabric. It inched higher, and then his warm lips were on my neck. His touch sent a ripple of energy through my system.
“Dance with the King, of course,” Jasmine giggled, her own hand traveling her date’s body.
I still didn’t understand the question. “I didn’t do anything,” I breathed, my voice catching as Sebastian nibbled at my ear. This wasn’t right. There was something more than this ecstasy—more than this pulsating flow of warmth under my skin, that wrapped around me like a quilt, that filled even the emptiest, most hollow parts of me…
“Now, I’m thinking it’s Áine who’s had too much to drink,” Jasmine laughed out once more, exchanging a glance with Christine.
Suddenly the petite blonde was out of Taryn’s grasp and in front of me, offering me her arm. “Take. I want you to,” she added.
I hesitated, realizing the weight of all eyes on me. I did want to, and I couldn’t lie to myself and say it was merely for curiosity’s sake. I wanted to because I wanted to stay lost—lost in this warmth where nothing cold could ever touch me again.
I took her arm, meeting the woman’s soft hazel eyes.
“You can do it. It’s fun,” Sebastian purred, his lips at my shoulder.
I channeled, my fingers gripping into her skin. It was a strange feeling, far more intimate than energy reading. Her power felt smooth, like a softly flowing river, merely a drop in the ocean in comparison to my own. But the act itself—taking her own experience of lust and indulgence and integrating it into my own—thatwas the high. It was like she was giving a part of herself to me, a fraction of her power that was only meant for her. And yet I took it. Because I could. And soon there was nothing left to channel.
She pulled her arm back. “Damn you’re strong,” she said, grimacing. She looked to Taryn. “I need more elixir. She syphoned it all away.”
My brows drew together. Before I could apologize, she was gone. Taryn only stared at me, refusing to say whatever was on her mind.Whatever, I thought. She was really starting to get on my nerves. Why couldn’t we just go back to how it was before? I wasn’t even sure what had happened.
“A little greedy, are we?” Sebastian whispered, and suddenly he was over top of me, eclipsing my view of everyone else.
An emptiness infiltrated my system, through the cracks of all this pleasure. I felt suddenly… bored.
“Ouch,” Sebastian said, his face falling.
“Did I say that out loud?” I whispered, mortified. This was all suddenly too much. Nothing felt exactly as it should. It wasn’tenough.The din of a great hunger rose up inside of me.
“Uh, yeah, you did,” Taryn snorted from behind Sebastian. “Come here, sweetheart. Áine doesn’t know how to appreciate you.”
Suddenly Sebastian was crawling off me, and I watched in a dazed confusion as he locked lips with Taryn, rolling onto the plush floor. I gasped as I homed in on my periphery, where Christine, Jasmine, and the two men were all nearly naked now, engaging in acts that are generally reserved for the bedroom.
Then, they all stopped. At first, I thought they were staring atme, but soon a cool hand was on my shoulder and an icy, dark power infiltrated the field of my energetic perception.
Lucius appeared before me, his ornate, golden crown resting lazily on his black curls. Amusement clouded his features as he offered me an arm. He grinned, and for the first time it wasn’t a smile full of spite. “Come on, then,” he chuckled.
I took his arm, and he hoisted me up to my feet. He paused, and I nearly flinched when he moved his hands up to my face. His fingers slipped below my mask, and he pulled it gently from my skin before casting it to the carpet. I swallowed, stealing a glance at the very real witch orgy taking shape back on the floor. Which I’d been frighteningly close to taking part in. Who would have thought I’d ever begratefulto see Lucius?
Christine looked genuinely displeased, but Jasmine seemed a lot more interested in the naked man in front of her than anything else going on. Sebastian averted his gaze as soon as I met it, turning back to Taryn. His hand reached up to her breasts.
Lucius placed his hand on my back, guiding me away from them, and I let him.
“No wonder you were bored,” he muttered once we were out of earshot, humor lacing his words. “That scene looked wholly unstimulating. We must leave them to their elixir haze. It’s the only way of life the poor things understand. They’ll never know what it’s like to be up on our level, you see? None of that is enough for you and me.”
Our level?I swallowed, glancing up at his cool blue eyes as he led me down a winding hallway, farther and farther away from the intoxicating collective effervescence of the carnal witch party. I paused, catching a glance of something in a room to my right. It was a woman, nude and kneeling, and a man stood behind her. In his hands he held what looked like a whip. He wacked it against the floor next to her and she flinched.
Lucius clucked his tongue. “Now, Áine. Don’t be a voyeur.”
“Oh,” I mumbled, realization striking me. Heat rose to my cheeks as I continued walking.
