“I could,” he corrected, his grip tightening against my hips as he held me firmly against him. “I’m power incarnate, Cami. When I claim you, I’m going to destroy you. I need to know you can handle it. Now give me a safe word.”
“You never gave me a safe word,” a deep voice interjected, the owner of it sounding more than a little pissed off.
Ajax, I thought, glancing over my shoulder to see him standing just inside the door with a shoulder propped against the wall.
“All you’ve ever done istake,” he went on, his dark eyes on Az. “And lie.”
Az bristled beneath me. “I’ve never lied to you.”
“Oh? So you didn’t pretend your bird was in control? Thus tricking me into leaving you alone with Cami?” He pushed off the wall, fury making his pupils pulse with power. “And what’s the first thing you do—seduce her?” His wand slid into his hand. “I should have known better than totrustyou.”
Az lifted his hands from my hips in a surrendering gesture. “Ajax?—”
My Midnight Fae mate was already murmuring magical words, casting a spell of unknown properties.
“Don’t,” I told him. But the magic was already weaving around his wand. A flick of his wrist sent it toward Az.
I did the only thing I could—I dove toward it and absorbed the shock of his enchantment.
“Cami!” Ajax shouted at the same time Az hissed.
Electricity zipped up and down my spine, sending me crashing to the floor with a yelp that bordered on a scream.
Or maybe I screamed.
No idea.
Becausefuck,that hurt. I couldn’t move. Breathe.Focus.
Static humming sizzled in my ears, irritating my senses.
I couldn’t hear or think beyond that noise, nor could I see.
It reminded me of the time Vita had sucked me into her pages and held me captive for a month.
Not again,I thought dizzily.I am not losing time again.
I also didn’t want to revisit one of Lucifer’s infamous memories of hisfall.
Wincing, I curled into myself—not exactly literally because I couldn’t feel my limbs, but figuratively. Or… or I assumed that was what I was doing, anyway.
Shit.
Whenever I came out of this paralyzing state, I was going to give Ajax a piece of my mind. He’d intended to hit Az with this spell, after everything else that had already been done to him.
No.
Not okay.
Ajax was mad. I got that. I’d been pissed at Az, too. At least until Az confided his history to me. Now… now I wasn’t as angry.
Well, no. I was angry. At Ajax, though.
Cockblocker, I thought. Az and I had been having a nice moment on the couch, one that had obviously been leading to fun times in the bed or on the floor.
Then Ajax had to storm in here and interrupt the moment.
Although, I was pleased to see him. And hear his voice. He’d blocked me from his mind before venturing back to the Hell Fae Realm to meet with Melek and Lucifer.
