Page 112 of Wild Fury (Fallen Royals 6)

She waves her hand. “It’s all water under the bridge, I guess. I freaked Ruby out. And I get to see you now, to say goodbye—”

“No.”

Lux starts. “What?”

“You’re not fucking leaving me again.” It pains me to think that she’s even considering it… until I remember our last conversation. Pretending to love her for a second, on a dare. She lost the game—it’s why she left the portfolio, after all. But we both ended up getting burned by that dare.

“Theo, I can’t do this.” She stares at me, eyes wide. “I can’t just keep wishing you’d love me. No one will love me.”

She tries to pass me, but I’m coming loose at the seams. I grab her shoulders and push her against the wall, just to keep her still. Just to make her stay.

“Keep wishing for better.” I lean down and touch my lips to her throat. “Keep wishing and hoping and, damn it, Lux, don’t say no one will love you.”

Her pulse is quick and light, and for a moment I think I might get nothing from her. But then she winds her arms around my neck. Her nails scrape my skin, my scalp. I’m on fire with sensation.

“You still want me?” Her voice is small.

I pull back a fraction, meeting her eyes. She doesn’t resist when I lift her so we’re eye level, and she wraps her legs around my hips.

“I do. You’re the only one I’ve ever seen. The only one who’s remotely got me.” I grip her chin to keep her from turning away. “I know you through and through. I know when you’re pissed and when you’re contemplating doing something you shouldn’t. And I know your heart.”

Her eyes unexpectedly fill with tears. “You told me you couldn’t love.”

I did. “And I was wrong. I thought I was broken, but I just… I needed time to heal.”

“You kiss me and taste blood,” she says woodenly.

All those ugly things coming back up between us.

“I did,” I say slowly. I don’t know how to explain this one. That my trauma shouldn’t have been imprinted on her. “But honestly, Lux, I had to work through my issues with that. It wasn’t related to you. I’m sorry I ever put that on you.”

She sighs. “I used to dream about the accident. That it was my head cracked open on the sidewalk, and I lost all my light… and the darkness was the only thing left. I saw that in you. It’s why I was fixated on you.”

I crack a smile and set her down. “I’m pretty sure nothing can change your dark and twisted ways. But… you never asked why I call you Lux.”

“Or little monster,” she says, “but that one is self-explanatory.”

I incline my head.

“Okay, then, tell me.”

“Lux is Latin,” I say.

Maybe it’ll click for her, but her blank expression answers my question—I’ll spell it out.

“It means light. Because you’re full of it, and I felt it. All the time. Even if you thought you were full of demons.”

She bursts into tears… which, if I’m being honest, is not quite the reaction I’m going for.

32

Lux

I’m fucking crying in front of Theo, and I can’t seem to stop. He goes so far as to escort me to the bathroom and hand me the whole box of tissues.

He’s been calling me Light for years and I never stopped to even question the nickname. I liked it because it was cool and edgy, but fucking hell. My heart keeps doing weird swoops, and my stomach is in knots.

“Are you okay?” He’s hovering by the door.

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