Page 87 of Dark OZ

“Fuck.” I screamed at the unexpected pain. Danny’s hand clamped over my mouth just as I tumbled head-first into my orgasm. I pushed back so that his last few intense pumps hit harder than any other, and I loved it. It was good enough to spiral my first orgasm directly into a second, right along with Danny.

Slowly, he lifted me from the table. Waves of endorphins flooded my system, making my body quiver. A dizzy kind of euphoria swept through me. For a second, I debated throwing him onto one of the couches and riding his cock until he was hard again. The box on the wall beeped in reminder of its arrival. Maybe next time.

Danny’s green eyes were bright. “Was I too rough on your back?”

I tucked the hem of my blouse back into the skirt. There were wrinkles pressed into my clothing that I was going to have a very hard time explaining away. Danny ran a hand through his hair, but he was just as rumpled as I was. Nick would take one look at us and know exactly what we’d been doing in here.

I swiped away the smudge of lipstick from around his lips and jaw… and neck. I smirked at him. What could I say, the man was edible. I was going to need to reapply—again.

“Nothing I can’t handle. Let’s go open this box.”

Chapter 38

Isnatchedthekeyfrom the holder and slipped it into the lock. It turned easily. The door popped open, and I pulled out a long drawer. The only thing inside the box was a laptop.

Grabbing the computer, I sat it on the table between us. The screen turned on. There was no prompt for login information or a home screen with apps to choose from. There was only a floating head. The features of the head shifted, using some kind of a filter that made it impossible to fully identify the person staring back at us.

“Hello, Dorothea,” they said with a heavily modulated voice that was neither male nor female.

“Wizard,” I replied curtly.

“Show me the emerald.” Well, at least he gets right to the point. No small talk for this guy.

Danny pulled a black metal box from his breast pocket. It looked like the kind you would get from a jeweler, except this one was made of a coated heavy metal.

“What about the tracker?” I asked, worried that removing the emerald would alert Westin to our location. The last thing I wanted was to bring more of the Winged Monkeys down on us.

“The walls of these vaults block all outside transmissions. It’s why I chose this as our meeting location,” the Wizard answered for him.

“Obviously, not all transmission.”

“Naturally, I’m the Wizard.” Like that somehow explained everything. A small drive popped open from the side of the laptop. “Place the emerald on the panel.”

I moved to open the necklace box. Danny snatched my hand away.

“First, I want to discuss payment. There are things we want in exchange for this emerald.”

“Once I have verified that the emerald is genuine, then we can discuss what comes next.”

I looked up to Danny with a death glare. If he fucked this up for me with his unnecessary displays of machismo, then he would have to deal with much more than my wrath, starting with my fist in his mouth.

“Fine,” he said reluctantly and opened the case.

I tried not to grin in victory, but Danny backing down to me was just too sweet not to.

The emerald glittered in its silver setting. Danny lifted it into the air, pausing to admire its glow before sitting the stone in the center of the drive. Something in the computer whirred.

There were several long minutes where the floating head was silent. I shook my foot against my ankle nervously. Danny’s hand dropped to my thigh, its heavy-weight doing its best to ground my nerves.

When the Wizard finally spoke again, he said. “What are your demands?”

I looked at Danny. He closed his eyes. A muscle ticked along his jaw. He wasn’t going to do it. He was going to let me ask for my freedom and sacrifice his chance for answers. It was taking all of his control to hold back, but he was giving this to me. The realization made my heart begin to race, and warmth bled from the center of my chest down to the tips of my fingers.

Before I could consider what I was doing, I said, “The Farm raided a commune outside of Oz, and they took three girls. I need full details about where they were sold and what has happened to them since, including where to find them now.”

Danny’s hand slammed on the table. “No. Thea needs to be set up with a new identity, strip The Farm of its assets, and set her up with a comfortable life outside the borders. Somewhere she can be safe and happy.”

I kicked Danny beneath the table. He needed closure and answers about his sisters if he was ever going to push past his guilt. Maybe we could even rescue them. There was a chance to save them. I couldn’t allow Danny to lose this opportunity, even if he was going to pass it up to give me mine.

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