Page 61 of Prince of Storms
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one tuckered out. I rose and headed toward the bathroom. In there, I finished cleaning myself up. I also found a robe and slipped that on. Several minutes passed, then several more, while I stared at the mirror, trying to calm my heart.
It wasn’t beating from the activities anymore, but rather the sudden influx of emotions that had overtaken my brain as the arousal faded and was replaced with proper thought processes.
I was feeling.Feeling. Emotions. Not pleasure, but real emotions about how Tor treated me, and I was not okay with that. He’d somehow wormed his way into my confidences, past my defenses, and then some. I couldn’t let that happen. Not yet, not today. I wasn’t ready.
Knowing what I had to do, I tried to steel myself in the mirror to actually go forward with it. I could hear him snoring softly but doubted it was overly deep. He’d wake easily, and I could end it, there and then, before anything else took root in me.
I opened the door to go to him.
Before I could say anything, however, a cold, frigid gust of air settled over me. Shadows peeled away from the wall, covering my mouth and wrapping up my limbs, binding me tighter than the strongest rope. I struggled but couldn’t even breathe. The room started to go dark.
Behind me, the door clicked closed.
Then I was bodily hauled from the room by something made of sheer darkness.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Tor
My sleep was rudely disturbed by the door flying open uninvited.
I was lying in bed, eyes closed, a drowsy smile tugging at my lips as I recalled the press of Mia’s flesh against mine. The sound of her cries filled my ears once more, the pleasant reminder tugging me further into a sleep state. I’d done what I’d set out to do, showing her yet another side of the pleasures in life that she deserved.
I still had to tell her she was my mate, but there would be a time and place for that. For the time being, I wanted to celebrate the crossing of a barrier. She’d let her walls down fully, inviting me in, which meant a lot. I doubted I would ever fully understand just how big of a step it was for her, but I intended to do my best to respect it.
You will never hurt again. Not by my hand, at least. I will protect you, shield you, from whatever comes forth.
I swore the oath to myself, vowing that nothing would ever hurt her. I would destroy it first, rend it limb from limb, crush it and pulverize it. She would besafewith me, and I would strike down anyone or anything that sought to put her in jeopardy. Human. Dragon. Beast. It didn’t matter.
Power coursed through me as I made the vow, but I shunted it aside, forcing myself to calm. It was not the time to get worked up around her. When she came back from the bathroom, she’d probably be tired and sleepy. We would either cuddle with her head on my chest and her body contoured to my side in perfect harmony.
Or we would go for round two. I was fine with either option.
But they were both denied as someone burst into the room.
“What the fuck?” I snarled, sitting up. “Don’t youdaredisturb—Ty?”
The figure in the doorway sagged against the knob, leaving a streak of dark liquid along the wood as he slumped to the floor, his breathing labored.
“It’s here,” he gasped, hitting the floor.
I was at his side in a blur, holding a section of his scalp against his skull, urging it to heal, while I checked him over. He was sliced to hell and back, with wounds crisscrossing his entire body. Whatever had attacked him had been ruthless.
“Ty, what happened? Who did this to you?” I snarled, looking out into the hallway, one fist filling with energy, providing light for me to see my friend and anything lurking in the hallway.
It was empty. There were no sounds, no approaching enemy. I dive-rolled through the opening, spinning left and right, but nothing was there.
Hurriedly, I returned to my room, closing the door behind me and lifting a table into place to block the entrance. It was a flimsy blockade, but if it bought me even a second of time, that would be enough.
“Ty,” I said, cradling my friend and bringing him to the bed. I didn’t care about bloodstains at that point. “Talk to me. Tell me what happened.”
I just wanted my friend to rest so that he could recover. There were so many wounds, and I knew his system would be strained to the limit to close them all before he lost too much blood. Heshouldsurvive, but it would take all his energy.
His fingers wrapped around my wrist. “It’s here,” he repeated, his eyes so wide I could see the whites.
“Mia!” I barked at the bathroom door. “Get out here.”
Then I turned my attention back to Ty, who was squeezing my wrist hard enough it hurt. I’d never seen him that scared before. Whatever had attacked had severely outclassed him.
