Page 243 of House Ignis

“That’s the spirit,” Aether muttered dryly through the bond, though I could feel his golden eyes watching me with a heavy, knowing concern.

•••

Drink after drink went down.

And the faster they went down, the wilder I got.

Aether kept warning me through the bond—sharp flashes of irritation, growing worry, and then outright threats—but by drink three,

I was already blocking him out, pushing his voice into a corner of my mind I didn't want to visit.

We were playing Riftpong, the cups floating lazily in the air, drifting just out of reach as if the game itself were mocking my lack of balance. Every time I missed, I had to drink. Which was every time.

Ryven tried to take the cup from my hand once, his eyes clouded with concern. “Ava,” he said quietly, his hand hovering over mine. “That’s enough. You're already swaying.”

I laughed in his face, the sound sharp and brittle. “I need to be numb, Ry,” I told him, my voice cracking. “Numb is better than this.”

And then I drank anyway.

Soon, someone dragged me onto the dance floor.

Music thumped through the floating dome, wind magic twisting the bass into something physical that vibrated deep in my bones.

Maddy’s eyes sparkled as we spun together, both of us laughing far too loudly to be truly happy.

Ember was somewhere behind us, throwing back shots straight from a bottle with a reckless glint in her eyes.

Zaria was at the edge of the floor, draped over two Ventus males at once.

Then I saw Rhea and Mavrik.

They were standing close near the bar, heads bent together, whispering. The intimacy of it—the simple, quiet ease of their connection—punched straight through me.

Gods. Everything reminded me of Asher.

The way people touched. The way they looked at each other.

The way they leaned close as if the rest of the world had ceased to exist.

I shook my head hard and kept dancing.

Kept spinning.

Kept trying to outrun the ache hollowing out my chest.

My eyes slid closed, the world turning into a swirl of colors.

Then, hands came around my waist.

My arms were already raised above my head, and my body swayed back into the heat of him without a single thought.

“Asher…” I whispered, my heart leaping.

Gods, his hands on me felt so right.

A mouth brushed the sensitive skin of my neck. Heat flared across my skin.

I moaned softly, tilting my head back. “Asher—”