She whimpers, her head tossing back against the pillows. Her inner walls clench tightly around my shaft. I catch her mouth with mine, swallowing her ragged cries as she shatters underneath me. Her climax ripples through her body in a beautiful, vulnerable wave.
The feeling of her coming around me snaps the last threads of my restraint. I bury my cock deep inside her one final time. As my own release hits, fire dances over my skin and over Iris’s. It doesn’t burn her. It never could.
Together, we shake through each wave of our shared orgasm. As the pleasure starts to settle into something more quiet, I collapse beside her and wrap her in my arms. I pull her back flush against my chest, her steady heartbeat against my ribs the only anchor I need.
Eventually, her breathing evens out. The exhaustion of the day should pull her into sleep. But she doesn’t close her eyes, and neither do I.
The last time we were together like this, she called our relationship a mistake. As the silence in the bedroom growsheavy, so does my heart. Because the reality of what waits outside these walls hasn’t changed. If anything, what I know about Kasim now makes the situation all the more dire.
Kasim is broken and dangerous, and he is hunting her. I can’t kill my own brother, and he will never stop until he erases the woman he perceives as a threat.
She turns to look at me. There’s no fear in her eyes. There is only a heartbreaking, resolute clarity. We’ve been dancing around the inevitable since the moment Kasim breached the wards. Ever since I told her the truth about my brother.
“There’s only one way to end this,” I tell her. “You know this, and so do I. Make the wish, Iris.”
She knows what wish I’m talking about. She’s too intelligent not to have guessed. But she’s still looking at me with pleading eyes, perhaps willing me to reconsider.
“I won’t let him hurt you, no matter what.” I squeeze her hand. “But… This is the only way to stop him for good.”
When I went to retrieve Kasim’s lamp from the ocean, I had a certain plan in mind. Now, I realize I was short-sighted. I pick up my own lamp and shove it into her hands. “Make the wish.”
Iris takes a deep breath and finally speaks. She makes the wish—the one I can never fulfill, no matter how hard I try. I feel the moment I’m bound to the lamp, and I know there’s no other way.
14
Brothers
Iris
The next day
“Are you still sure you want to take the night shift? You don’t usually like it.”
Still leaning against the counter at The Daily Grind, Sasha gives me a skeptical look. My boss has been eyeing me like this ever since my brief disappearance. I’ve never missed a day of work in my life, and I’m not the greatest liar.
But today, I’ve come prepared. I mentally apologize to Sasha for my true agenda and force a smile. “Usually, I’m swamped with schoolwork. I just finished an important paper. I can afford a few sleepless nights.”
It’s not even a lie, although education isn’t exactly my main concern right now. “Besides, I want to make it up to you,” I finish.
If things go the way I expect them to, The Daily Grind may not even be standing by the end of the day. But buildings are just that—bricks and mortar. It would cost Rakan merely a thought to fix one. Our real problem is far more complicated.
Sasha lets out a deep sigh. “Taking another shift isn’t the best way to reassure me. We were really worried about you when you missed work. You sure nothing’s going on?”
“Perfectly sure,” I reply. It’s true enough. After all, she can’t help me with what’s actually going on.
If Camille were here, she’d be pushing me further. My cellphone is already full of missed calls and frantic messages. But I’ll just have to worry about reassuring my friend once the ifrit who’s hunting me down is no longer an issue.
Fortunately, Sasha isn’t as insistent as Camille. Maybe she’s relieved at having a free evening to herself. “All right, Iris. Have it your way. Take care and good night.”
It’s a quarter to nine when she leaves, and the night crowd hasn’t really started coming in. At this hour, the daylight customers are usually retiring to their homes, and the night creatures aren’t yet in the mood for a bite. Sasha hasn’t made any reservations for vampire bachelor parties. Thank God for that.
I stand behind the counter and wait. My hands itch for something to do, a book to read, an order I can prepare. But I know there’s no point in even bothering.
I’m not here to do my job. I’m here to lay a trap.
It takes less than a minute for the bell to chime. Kasim al-Rashid walks into The Daily Grind, like any other customer, like his brother once did. He’s not wearing Casey’s guise today. Instead, he’s come as himself, dressed in a pair of ancient Arabian pants.Sirwal,they’re called, if I remember correctly.
Kasim eyes me from head to toe and shakes his head. “So… You made a wish, Iris Beckett. And one that concerned me, no less. And here I thought you were more intelligent than most humans. How disappointing.”
