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“Sounds good to me.” Lex started to walk away. “We’ll meet later to talk more, yeah?”
“Yeah.” I glanced back at the door. “Hopefully, we’ll have something to talk about.”
Jagger left as well to tell our security what the new protocol with Arden was going to be. Eventually, Arden emerged in a snug blue t-shirt and jeans, a pair of new sneakers on her feet.
“Ready to go?” I asked.
“Yeah.” She pulled at the clothes. “I can’t believe all the clothes fit.”
“Why wouldn’t they?” I gestured for the enforcers to follow us. “We have fae who do our tailoring.”
“Of course you do,” she mumbled, hiking a plain backpack up on her shoulder.
I didn’t respond. I wasn’t surprised that she wanted to maintain her independence and not rely on us for anything. Everything about her screamed the fact that she operated by her own rules. But her distaste and discomfort with nice things was unusual. Most female fae would have killed to be put in a room like the one she was in.
A driver took her to the coffee shop, stopping at the end of the block as to not attract too much attention. The enforcer assigned to her did a cloaking spell on himself and stepped out of the car behind her.
“I’ll be waiting here the moment your shift ends,” I said. “Don’t try anything stupid.”
“I’ve had my fill of stupid stunts to last me at least a century.” She tried to close the door, but I stopped her.
“One month, Arden,” I warned her. “After that, your time is up, and we’re going to change our methods.”
Her eyes narrowed at me. “You don’t have to keep reminding me. I’ll see you later.”
She slammed the door shut. I sighed and watched her go inside. My eyes drifted to her ass, which looked sinfully good in her jeans, before I looked away again. She was going to be an even bigger handful this month, a bundle of frustration packed into a sexy package.
Chapter13
Arden
Getting used to a constant enforcer presence, whether they were cloaked or not, took a few days. Every morning, an enforcer and one of the Royals were at my door to take me to work in an enchanted SUV, disguised as a regular car that no one blinked an eye at in the shop’s neighborhood. And without fail, they were waiting for me when my shift ended to take me home, where I puttered around the luxurious living space they’d given me. At least they’d sent someone to grab a few of my clothes to make me feel more at home.
Since I’d missed several days of work after being arrested and held captive, I worked for several days in a row without a break to make up for my lost shifts. I didn’t need to—the Forsaken Lunars had paid me, even though they hadn’t given me the information I’d really done the job for, so my bank account was full. But I wanted to feel normal, and work was the norm for me. Being around the Royals left me feeling off-kilter, especially as I got to know them.
Flint was the most serious by far. We barely spoke on the drive to work, unless he was reminding me that I had however many days left to find the artifact. I wasn’t getting anywhere on that front, not that I told him.
Jagger was intense and unpredictable in a way that captivated me every time. Those dark eyes of his made me feel naked, especially on days when I wore something a little tight.
Lex was the most fun of the bunch. We actually talked like we were two civilian fae. His friendliness caught me off guard at first, especially since he’d been so stern with me up until that point. Maybe it was an act. But something told me it wasn’t. I was already doing what they’d asked of me—why would he bother being nice if he didn’t want to be?
It didn’t hurt that he was nice to look at. I shouldn’t have thought that at all—I was still technically a prisoner—but he’d worked his way under my skin. I’d gotten a lot of attention from men in the past, and it was easy to brush them off. But something about the way Lex’s smile created a dimple in one of his cheeks and the way he treated me didn’t let me ignore him.
I slipped my hand under my panties. I was already wet, so I made circles around my clit. Lex seemed like he’d be fun in bed, the kind that made me break out of my shell easily.
And Flint…I sucked in a breath as I added more pressure, moving my fingers faster. He was intense and focused in every way, so why would he be different with sex? Mapping out all of my sensitive spots, bossing me around, making me come on command.
I dipped my fingers inside my pussy, throwing off my blankets as my body overheated. Just the fantasies pushed me closer to the edge, faster than they ever had before.
Thinking about Jagger nearly made me lose control. My sex life was boring—I went home with men at bars sometimes and had a somewhat satisfying time. But Jagger screamed unconventional. He’d probably do something I’d never dreamt of doing with anyone. Anal or bondage or something I hadn’t even heard of before.
I came with a shudder, my hips lifting off the bed. The pleasure rolled through my body for much longer than my usual orgasms did, eventually subsiding until I was limp.
I rolled over, burrowing my face in my pillow until I recovered and got my head on straight. I had today off. If my life were normal again, I would have gone grocery shopping or done laundry. The boring tasks that I sometimes hated sounded really nice right about now. My living room space had a small fridge and a teeny stove. Most evenings, someone brought me dinner, but I was tired of not choosing what I ate.
I reached for my phone and called Lex, who would have escorted me to work today if I’d had a shift. They’d all given me their numbers, just in case.
“I need to go grocery shopping,” I said the minute he picked up the phone. “Will you take me?”
