Page 20 of Forbidden Magic
Cole raises a brow. “Then why are you still lying on the ground?”
I shuffle to my ass and wipe a dark wave away from my face. “You won. Just leave.”
“Whoops. You mortals are squishier than Fae fruit.” Flynn collects a bit of blood from the back of my head. “Should have kept that helmet on.” His leer slides down my body. “I wonder if you taste as sweet as you smell.”
Mortified, I realize my skirt is hiked up to my hips, my black cotton panties on display. My mind and limbs turn to stone as Flynn descends upon me, his cruel amusement morphing into interest.
I yank the plaid down, pawing at it like I’m covering up my dirtiest secret.
Flynn’s dark light eclipses Cole completely. His proximity makes everything else around him fade to black. I try to move, but my legs have more in common with overcooked spaghetti than they do with functioning muscles.
“The game is over, pet. But we could still have fun. What do you say?”
I swallow against the roil in my stomach. “I’ve had quite enough offunfor one night.”
Cole stretches his arms over his head. “She’s not interested, mate.” The boredom on his face is both obvious and hateful in the face of my predicament.
Flynn huffs. “Who is she kidding? She’d beg for it within a minute.”
The blond Fae’s predatory gaze picks at a loose thread inside me until my righteous anger unspools into a tangle of ice. The migraine lancing inside my skull dulls my powers, and I suddenly realize I’m alone with two tall, heavily muscled men. Two incredibly powerful Fae that can manipulate me into submission.
“Do you want a kiss, darling?” The deep tone slithers inside my cells, Flynn’s beautiful face a mere inch from mine.
Some part of my brain knows what’s happening, but my lips are warm and hungry. It doesn’t feel like the mind control spells I read about. Icanmove or spit in his face, but I don’t want to. I want to be crushed by those full lips and discover the taste of them on my tongue. I crave nothing but his touch.
Flynn Verinos brushes my cheek with his thumb, and I want to submit to him. To know what it feels like to be broken apart and put back together by his expert kiss. I know nothing in this realm might ever compare…
If he kisses me, maybe some of that light inside his skin, that delicious immortality, will seep into me.
It’s magic at its most primitive state. Temptation. Seduction. His powers smother me from all sides, cutting my oxygen until I’m panting.
At the last possible second, Cole grabs Flynn by the shoulders and pulls him toward the entrance of the cave. “Come on, let’s not waste our time on a ugly mortal.”
Something passes between them. Flynn’s face shrinks as Cole glowers.
Fists curl against thighs. Cole’s jaw ticks.
Finally, the tension in Flynn’s back eases. “You’re right. I bet she’s a cold fish anyway.”
Their silhouettes disappear around the corner, and I let go of the breath I’d been holding. The air catches in my throat. Tears wet my cheeks, but I swipe them away with the back of my wrinkled white blouse.
Ugly mortal.
I’m not sure which word sounded foulest rolling off Cole’s tongue. Which cruel inflection of his smooth, husky voice cut into me the deepest. Hate simmers inside me as I sit there, bloodied and humiliated. Some part of my brain is still caught in the dark fascination and restless energy I felt when we were alone. Flynn’s magic shattered me, and some debased part of me was preparing to kneel at their feet andservicetheir needs.
And that’s nauseating. I can handle punches and scrapes. What I can’t handle is being robbed of my self-worth by some dark Fae mojo.
There’s got to be an antidote. Some sort of spell to ward myself against these beasts.
Cole Desyris is not worth my tears or smiles, not worth a puff of my breath. He’s only worth the salt needed to resist him.
9
Raise Your Glass
They corral the losers into a meadow near the main path. I’m both sad and relieved to see Lydia among them.
She’s got a big five tattooed across her neck. “Hey. Who got you? Melanie found me in two seconds.”
