Page 56 of Dark Sold Mate

But she knew Rael was right. They were trying their level best. The point was that it was still not enough.

The real problem was her, though. Her so-called power was useless.

They pulled up to Silas’ house just as the sun was setting. Elle got out of the truck, her muscles tense.

Silas was on the porch, with his phone pressed against his ear, and a grim expression. On seeing them, he ended the call and stepped down.

“Anything?” he asked.

“Visions from the past,” Elle said flatly. “Nothing useful.”

His brows creased together to form a slight frown. Ever since they slept together, he had been giving Elle space. Probably because his wolf wanted to ravish her every minute of the day.

And Elle surprisingly wanted that. She could not forget about that night with him. Something about the way Silas made her feel special, worshipped, beautiful, and wanted was addictive. She wanted to do it again.

However, they had greater concerns. Women were still being kidnapped and sold. The trafficking circle had still not been eliminated. And Elle’s power, which should have helped them stop it, was turning out to be absolutely useless.

“I’m going in,” she walked past Silas. “I need a shower.”

She could feel his eyes on her even as she walked in. The bond pulsed, urging her to turn around, to go back to him, to let him pull her into his arms.

Elle ignored it and locked herself in the bathroom.

The hot water was able to take the strain out of her muscles, but did nothing to relieve the frustration burning in her chest. Elle stood under the shower spray for a long time, trying to shut down the loud voices in her head.

When she eventually left the bathroom, still in a towel, there were clean clothes on her bed. A t-shirt that belonged to Silas and a pair of leggings.

She changed swiftly and walked down the stairs, following the smell of something cooking. It led her to the kitchen.

Silas was by the stove cooking what seemed to be pasta. He looked up as she walked in, his eyes falling on the shirt she wore.

“Hungry?”

“Starving.”

They ate without speaking. Just the sounds of cutlery scraping against the plates and tension in the air. Whenever Elle looked up, she found Silas watching her with an intensity that made her skin flush.

“We should talk,” Silas broke the silence.

“About what?”

“About what happened between us.”

Elle set down her fork. “What’s there to talk about? We had sex to fulfill the bond and activate my magic. Mission accomplished.”

He set down his fork, too. “Was that all it was to you?”

“What else would it be?”

“Elle.”

“Don’t.” Elle stood abruptly. “Don’t turn this into what it is not. We did what we needed to do. That’s it.”

She walked away, but without noticing the pained expression on Silas’ face. If she had stayed back and allowed him to have that conversation with her, she might have also admitted just how much it meant to her, too.

Sleeping with Silas had caused something to change somewhere inside her, and she simply could not afford to feel that way.

So, instead, Elle went back to her room and spent the night lying awake on her bed and trying not to think about the man sleeping across the hall. Trying not to recall the way he had made her feel and trying not to want it again.