AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Nine
Ryder
I clutch the smoldering spot below my neck where Ven juiced me with her magic. Damn, she’s strong!
“Shit,” I groan. “Guess I won’t be calling you little witch anymore. You pack a mean magical punch.”
“Ryder! Oh my God.”
Ven kneels over me, her hands fluttering above my chest. Another flow of magic pours out of her, but this time it’s to heal me. A soft shimmer of light dusts my skin, and the bloody hole begins to knit back together. If I were full human, that blow would have killed me for sure.
I wince and suck in a breath as she does her work. “What were you dreaming about?”
“What?” She stiffens, and her magic falters for a moment.
“You were having a nightmare. I was trying to wake you up. Obviously a poor choice.” I let out a chuckle which hurts my chest, and I wince again.
Ven chews on her lower lip, her brow crinkled with worry. “My ex-boyfriend,” she says after a long pause. “And the demon who kidnapped me.”
“Your ex?” I raise my brows. “He must have been a real piece of work if he gets lumped in with the demon. You dream about him a lot?”
Now it’s her turn to wince. “Every night.”
Our eyes meet, and she looks down as if she’s ashamed.
“It’s been a really rough couple of years,” she adds softly. Her hands are still sending magic into me, and the wound is nearly closed.
“Hey.” I reach up and run a finger down the side of her cheek until she meets my eyes. “I didn’t mean to trigger you. I’m sorry I brought it up.”
Before I woke her, she’d been tossing and turning so hard that I’d placed my hands gently on her shoulders. Her eyes had landed on me, and in that instant she’d been terrified. She’d said it was the horned demon she’d been dreaming of, but I can’t help but feel like, in that moment, it was me she’d been afraid of. And Ven being scared of me is something I’ll do anything to avoid. Anything at all.
Which means I need to put aside whatever this is I’m feeling and move on as soon as we find her friend. Because, ultimately, I’m not a good guy. I’m a thing of nightmares, too.
“There. I think that should do it,” Ven says, breaking through my thoughts.
She reaches out, tentatively, and runs her fingers over my skin where the hole had been. As if she needs physical proof, beyond what her eyes can see, that I’m going to be okay. That her magic did its job. Her touch sends a shiver through my body, and our eyes meet.
“Thanks,” I say, feeling a flush of warmth from her magic. “You’re very talented.”
“Don’t thank me for fixing what I broke in the first place.” A bitter smile turns her lips. “Sorry. Again.”
“I’ll remember never to bother you when you’re sleeping.” I grin.
“Speaking of sleep… it’s nearly dawn.” She scrunches up her nose. “I know we only got a few hours of sleep, but we should get back on the case.”
She’s still kneeling over me, her red curls messy from sleep and cascading over one shoulder. A soft glow of magic buzzes around her. Just a slight move to the left and she’d be straddling me. I imagine her gyrating those wicked hips as she rides my cock…
I’ve really got to get this under control. The lust I feel for Ven is something I haven’t felt in a long time. But it’s more than that. Before we went to bed, when I’d told her I wasn’t relationship material…I hadn’t even meant to say that. She has this way of beguiling me, of getting past my defenses before I realize it. It reminds me of someone else, from ages ago. Someone I’ve tried very hard to lock away in a safe, dark place where my consciousness doesn’t wander.
“Ryder?”
Shit. “Yes, good idea. I’m ready.”
I sit up and swing my legs over the side of the bed. My feet touch the cool tile floor. Ven yelps as the magical barrier bumps into her from the other side.
“Sorry!”
“I guess that answers our question about the spell wearing off.” She frowns.
