Page 38 of Sugar Rush

"Shit," I slurred. "Sorry, Ark."

He repaid me by throwing a punch into my boob, which was fair enough. Tit for tat.

"Not working," he hissed.

"No shit, Sherlock."

I dove artfully aside when he aimed another fist at me, and I wished I could have taken credit for it, but it was all the damn foxes.3

I ducked, and Ark's hand sailed so close to the top of my head that he skimmed my hair. He sent a rush of guilty apology through the mate bond and—hey,therewas an idea. The circle bond wasn't working, but this one might.

I plunged into his soul, shuddering at the vicious emotions and steely composure that surrounded me. Ark was constantly warring with himself, his control over his emotions immaculate and ruthless.Let it out,I wanted to urge him, but keeping everything masked was what helped him survive and I wasn't about to judge his coping mechanisms when mine was to run away, rent a holiday cottage, and screw my way through a demon circle.4

I wrapped myself around his soul even as I punched him in the ribs, and jumped when I felt something quick and clever rush through him.

Alright, you little fuckers. You're evicted.

I took a breath, bided my time—punched Ark in the shoulder, got kicked in the knee—and grabbed the next surge of mischief and excitement when it flashed through his soul. I imagined a massive, clawed hand crushing the thing out of existence and couldn't believe when itworked.

I tuned back into my body just in time to experience the full force of a hit to the chest. I cried out in pain.This sucks.

I landed on my already bruised backside with a yelp, but Ark looked at me and growled in rage at what he saw. I took it as a positive sign that he had more autonomy than before, and sank back into his soul.

The downside was I couldn't pay attention to my body and Ark's soul at once, so I had no idea what was happening while I zoned out, grabbing hold of another wily fox and crushing it before going for the third.

It evaded me, slipping through my metaphorical fingers and barking at me in laughter.

You're going down, you little fucker,I threatened, jabbing out my hands over and over.

The wily fucker jumped through my grasp and taunted me by nipping at me. I swore little teeth gnashed at my soul, drawing blood, and I flinched with a hiss. But letting go and giving up was exactly what it wanted, and I was far too contrary to do what anyone wanted from me.

You messed with the wrong psycho, little fox,I taunted, and dove for it with renewed determination.

Pain rocketed along my fingers, but I didn't dare break concentration until I'd grabbed the fox and slammed my mental hands together, crushing it out of existence.

I became aware of my surroundings, the road hard and cold under me and pain thumping through my ribs, stomach, and hand.

"Princess," Arkan rasped, lifting his boot off my fingers and dropping beside me. Gentle hands grasped my face, thumbs soothing circles over my cheeks, wholly unprepared for my forehead to slam into his.

"Sink—into my soul," I grunted, pain erupting through my skull. Headbutts were no joke. "Squash the foxes."

"I'll get them out of you, my Aveline," Ark promised, a steely determination entering his eyes. Fuck, his cheek was red where a bruise would form, and I could feel pain thumping from other places on his body. In the bond, we were a strange, morbid orchestra of pain.

My fist reared up, but Ark caught it in his warm fingers, pressing his other palm to my chest when I tried to lurch off the ground.

"Almost got it, baby," he soothed, his voice so fucking gentle it knocked the breath out of me more than any punch. He'd never called me baby before. It was crazy how much I liked it.

"There," he murmured, lifting his palm off my chest and brushing a kiss to my knuckles. "All gone."

I let out a long, slow breath, slumping against the floor. "Let's never do that again."

"Agreed," he said, leaning over to kiss my brow.

"Where the Hell have you two been?" a rough voice growled, shoes scuffing the ground in rapid footsteps.

I peered up, squinting at eight feet of shirtless, furiously-worried demon.

"Taj," I exhaled, relief hitting me like a brick. "Nice of you to finally turn up. We could've used your help with the hellfoxes."

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