Page 39 of Demon Kept

“Her cheeks are flushed. Do you hear her heart? She likes your method of warming better than my first attempt. Which doesn’t count.”

My gaze locked with Turik again.

“I will make your heart race even faster when I warm you,” he promised, flashing a smile at me before scowling at Vorx. “She’s warm, and it’s too cold for her to wash in the lake. Let her go before you spill all over her pretty, soft ass.”

Vorx jerked behind me and grunted a pained sound a second before liquid heat painted my spine. Jet after jet coated my skin. I flushed hotter and tried not to squirm against the hand still cupping my mound or the one finger that, with just a bit more pressure, could part me and—

Nope. Not going there.

Instead, I narrowed my eyes at Turik.

“You did that on purpose, mentioning my ass. You wanted him to do that.”

Turik chuckled. “Maybe Vorx’s warming wasn’t so good after all?”

Vorx kissed the back of my head.

“Do not worry,myShelby,” Vorx said, releasing me. “I will clean the mess I made.” A soft cloth touched my back in brief gentle swipes as Vorx efficiently removed the evidence of how much he enjoyed warming me. When he finished, he tugged my pants back up into place.

“It is a beautiful backside,” he said with one more kiss on the back of my head before leaving the cabin.

“I can’t decide if you guys are making things weird or interesting.”

“Interesting,” Turik said without hesitation. “And safe. That more than anything.”

Shaking my head at his turned back, I tugged my shirt into place, then shuffled closer to the stove. Although there was heat radiating from the open door, it wasn’t enough to dispel the deep chill that had settled into the space from months of disuse.

“Thank you for lighting the fire.”

“You’re welcome. Are you ready to fish?” he asked, standing and zipping my jacket for me. “You can warm up in here again before we leave.”

I nodded and held still as he tucked some stray hair up into my hat.

Impulsively, I wrapped my arms around his waist and hugged him. He held me close, his hands smoothing over my back.

“It does feel safe. And weird. And interesting. But a little confusing too. Games are always fun until someone gets hurt, you know?” I tipped my head to look up at him. “I don’t want anyone getting hurt.”

He placed a gentle kiss on my forehead then another one a little to the left of that.

“No one will, my Shelby. Trust me. Trust Vorx. We’re good at games and would never hurt you.”

“What if this game hurts one of you? And I’m not talking about physical injuries here. I’m talking about a hurt heart.”

Turik slowly shook his head at me.

“Watching you laugh and smile will never hurt our hearts. It makes us happy too.”

I grinned into his chest while calling myself seven shades of stupid for buying into his pretty words. Playing naked games with these two fey had only one outcome, and I didn’t relish the idea of breaking someone’s heart when they decided it was time to choose between the two of them. But I didn’t want to be the adult and call it quits either.

In the last hour, I hadn’t thought of Nat once. I hadn’t felt fear. In fact, by some miracle, I had actually felt a small measure of joy, and I wanted more—so much more—before I did the mature thing and said stop.

“Okay. Then, I guess I’ll keep playing along.”

He tipped my chin up and lightly kissed my forehead.

“Good.”

After we joined the others outside, I fished my heart out, catching more largemouth bass, which seemed to be a thing for the area. It was fun listening to the fey heckle each other regarding the size versus the quality of their fish. Their friendly, competitive nature made for an enjoyable afternoon.

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