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I’m not sure why I withhold it.
Leaning down, I put my lips much too close to hers, since I’m a masochist. “Poor little pampered princess,” I taunt, ignoring the narrowed gaze she casts at me as I begin to circle her. “Precious Ella and her perfect little sheltered life. You have no idea how hard it is to summon the control for power so great. Because you’re too…delicate for what training it would require.”
She sucks in a breath when my lips brush across the back of her neck for no other reason than my control is slipping.
Her hair is balled on top of her head like some ridiculous new-age fad that gives me far too much access to her elegant, tempting neck. I brush aside a small tendril of hair that has escaped said bun, and her entire body shivers when my fingertips barely skate across her skin in the process.
“You think you’re a big bad power,” I go on, pressing closer to her back as she remains rather rigid. “You think you can control the madness.”
She sucks in a breath of surprise, and I bite back a groan when I suck her neck, unable to resist just a small taste. Her head lolls to the other side, granting me more access, submitting without realizing she’s even doing it. My gums ache with the need to let my fangs descend, but I deny them.
My hands go to her hips, gripping them firmly as I fight with everything in me not to just take her.
Forcing my mouth away, my fingers dig into her hips a little harder when she arches into me, testing my limits.
“But you’ll always be nothing more than a liability. A weak link. Wasting time on you would mean losing a war. You’re not worth it.”
I shove her away from me, and she stumbles before whirling around angrily. With a wink, I vanish from her sight, leaving her to haunt my cabin on her own.
I land in the bunker where most of my people have been crashing. Simone startles, since she’s the only one in here and trying to take a nap, it seems. Considering she’s been on sentry duty for three nights running, I’m not losing my temper.
“How badly do you need rest?” I ask her in a bored tone, hiding all the effects Ella has left me with.
She stands immediately, her eyes brightening. “I have a few days left in me,” she says, eyeing my body and noticing the softening appendage that
is still quite too firm. She bites down on her bottom lip as she reaches for me.
“I have enough energy to do anything you want me to,” she goes on, her voice husky.
I catch her wrist seconds before her fingertips touch the front of my jeans, and fear widens her eyes when I twist her arm back.
“Good,” I tell her curtly, even as she winces. “Since you don’t have anything else to do, you can follow Ella Ice and figure out where Gavin is. She’s in contact with him, and he’s feeding her valuable information. Follow her. Find him.”
Her eyes chill, and I release her wrist. She rubs it absently, though we both know it’s just for show. She likes a great deal of pain far more than she enjoys pleasure. It’s why she pushes my boundaries, knowing there will be some pain involved. Blame it on our captors. It fucked us all up in some way or another.
“What if we have just a little fun before I go? It’s been too long for you, Slade. And it’s been too long for me.”
Honestly, the pain is the only reason she even tries to tempt me. She’d much rather have an attractive female than me in her bed.
“I’m sure you’ll find plenty of willing volunteers after you return from this mission,” I tell her flippantly, turning to stroll out.
“What about you?” she calls to my back. “What’s your deal lately? You turn everyone away, and you certainly didn’t have that issue in the rings.”
Rolling my eyes, I keep calm and continue walking. Ella fucking Ice happened. Can’t even imagine touching another woman now. The thought is literally repulsive. I assume it’s the same for her with other men.
An unsettling feeling washes over me as my steps slow. Why would Ella be sneaking around to speak with Gavin? He claims to love a witch the demon has taken over, but...clearly he can’t be trusted.
He could be spewing lies and working both sides. A snake instills fear. A butterfly brings you much closer. It’s why our kind have such physical allure.
And Ella has been gullible with males in the past.
My fists clench, and I remind myself that I have far more important things that need attending so I don’t take on this stalking mission myself.
“What happens when I find Gavin?” Simone finally asks as I turn back around, moving on from the topic she never truly drops.
“Take Hank with you. He can follow him through the planes. You stay on Ella until she exits the forest.” I run a hand over the bit of facial scruff on my cheek as I add, “And if Gavin touches her even in the slightest—malicious or soft—I want you to rip his head from his shoulders and deliver it to my doorstep. Understood?”
Her back stiffens, and her eyes narrow a little too knowingly.
