Page 12 of The Heirs

Stepping towards him, I shrugged at his question. “I just want to forget who I am for a minute. Forget that this is my life.”

Madden matched my stride until we met in the middle, chest to chest, breathing each other in. He towered over me, both in height and bulk, and I tilted my head up to meet his eyes.

“Can you help?” I said, my voice a whisper, hoping he could hear my need for him to help me forget.

“You don’t need to ask me twice, sweetheart.” Madden growled and then his mouth was on mine and his fingers were in my hair.

Wrapping his fist in my curly locks, he tilted my head backwards, giving him access to enter my mouth. His tongue tangled with mine, his teeth nipping at my lips, rough and distracting. And all I wanted was more of this man before me.

Running my palms down his chest, I felt the hard muscles beneath, flexing with his movements and enticing me. Slipping my hands underneath his shirt, I yanked it up, wanting to feel his bare skin against mine. Ripping away from my mouth, Madden hurriedly pulled his shirt off and I did the same. I hadn’t bothered to put on a bra this morning and I greedily drank in Madden’s hungry gaze as he eyed my bare chest. Allowing him only a moment to appreciate the view, I threw myself back in his arms, relishing in the feel of his skin on mine. With a groan, Madden collided with my mouth again, picking me up easily. I wrapped my legs around him as he began to walk and then I felt the rough bark of a tree against my back.

Moving from my mouth, Madden began alternating between sucks and bites down my neck before wrapping his mouth around my nipple, causing me to moan in pleasure. The sound seemed to spur him on, and he attacked my skin, biting every inch he could find and then soothing it with the feel of his tongue. Everything felt so good. Too good. But I wanted, no needed, more.

“More,” I breathed on a moan and Madden growled in return. Dropping me to the ground, Madden tore off his pants and boxers in one swift movement before doing the same to me. Quickly, we were both naked, breathing hard, the lust rolling between us like a tidal wave.

“Turn around and put your hands on the tree.” Madden barked the command and I willingly followed.

I could feel my arousal coating my thighs, slick with want for the man behind me. Madden gripped my hips, positioning me how he wanted, and reaching a hand down to see if I was ready. I don’t think I could be more ready if I tried.

“Fuck Halley, I need to be inside of you now.” Madden murmured as he thrust two fingers inside of me, spreading my wetness around.

“Then fuck me. Now.” I uttered and without another thought, Madden thrust into me, his cock stretching me.

We both hesitated for a second, allowing myself to adjust to his size. I felt full throughout my entire body, and I wanted more. Pushing my hips back against his hardness, Madden groaned and then all his control snapped.

With one hand wrapped around my hair and the other gripping my hip, Madden began to move in a bruising rhythm, fast and hard and so fucking good. I couldn’t contain the moans that fell past my lips, lost to the pleasure he was giving. Yanking my head back by my hair, I felt a sting of pain, but it quickly dissolved as his mouth found my neck, sucking my skin and marking me.

As Madden continued to fuck me from behind, I felt the pleasure building inside of me, reaching a crescendo that I would soon fall over. Moving his hand from my hair, Madden reached around me, finding my clit and massaging it in time with his thrusts. I couldn’t hold out for much longer and suddenly, I was falling over the edge, coming hard as my vision blurred with ecstasy.

“Fuck,” Madden roared as he followed me over the edge, his chest brushing my back as we both bent over in exhaustion.

We stood there like that for several moments, the only sound our heavy breathing and the wind whistling through the trees. Eventually, Madden pulled out, leaving me feeling empty. Turning towards him, we watched as the other got dressed. When we were both fully closed, everything came rushing back to me, the emotions banging on my chest, and I felt myself close off.

I didn’t know if it was Shifter instincts or Madden himself, but he seemed to notice the shift in me immediately. Figuring he would run off, leaving this to someone else, I began to turn, but his grip on my elbow stopped me.

“How about another kind of escape?” He asked and I quirked my eyebrow at him. I had no clue what he had in my mind, but it seemed I would chase any sort of distraction at the moment.

“Let’s go grab that friend of yours and figure out what the hell happened to her. You’re not the only one who has a new life ahead of them.”

I couldn’t help but smile at him. Not only would it be the perfect distraction, but I also loved spending time with Kalani. And I wanted to do everything possible to help her through these new changes in her life. Walking back towards the dorm, my thoughts spiraled. But instead of thinking about everything I now had on my shoulders, I thought about the man next to me. And how I thought there was a whole other side of him I was now getting to see.

Chapter Sixteen

Eli

After Halley ran out and Madden followed her, the remaining four of us sat in silence, not sure what to make of the situation. My heart ached for the pain Halley was experiencing, but I wasn’t sure what I could do. I had wanted to follow her as well, but Madden had escaped the room first and I didn’t want to bombard her with people. Clearly, she wouldn’t have left if she didn’t need some space.

Finally, I spoke up. “Maybe we should head out. We’ve all been through a lot lately and it’d be good to decompress.”

I knew I at least needed some space as well. I hadn’t given myself a moment to really focus on everything happening and that was part of the reason I lost control of my power earlier, pushing my own sadness on to everyone else. I usually had good control of my power, but I was still learning. Everyone seemed to expect great things from me, being the only Ethos able to alter emotions, but sometimes I still felt like a kid. I was only twenty years old and had just come into my powers less than a year ago. I wasn’t perfect and yet I felt that was expected of me.

Maeve agreed to head out, saying she was going to call her parents and check in with them. She had already called them last night to tell them she was okay, but I’m sure they wanted more updates. My own mom was blowing up my phone and I knew I needed to return her call at some point today. Knox stood up as well, silently agreeing to leave. The dark circles under his eyes and worry lines in his forehead told me he needed to decompress maybe more than the rest of us. He was in fact the one gathering information and formulating the plans. The three of us moved towards the door, but Kalani stayed put.

“I’ll just stay here until Halley gets back. Make sure she’s okay. Then I’ll head back to my dorm to rest and give her some space.”

We all nodded our heads and then went our separate ways. Maeve meandered towards Ethos dorms, but I followed along with Knox, wanting to check in on him. Most of my focus had been on making sure Halley was handling everything okay, but Knox was still my best friend. And he clearly needed someone to talk to. Contrary to some beliefs, I was a really good listener, not just a talker.

The two of us walked in silence, passing Central territory on the way to the Seers dorm. The usual awe that ran through me when I gazed at the buildings, built in a different time, was replaced with despair. Although all student and Hunter bodies were removed from the grounds, it would take longer for the rest of the destruction to diminish. The once lush green grass was now ripped up and covered in blood. The red melted into the green as if painted on. A painting of the innocent people who died. Feeling my power bubble in my chest yet again, I turned away from the debris of the attack, avoiding the emotions the sight brought.

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