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My chest stills, not a single breath gracing my lungs as I wait for her to stop. To do something. Surely, she’s not going to walk into a spider’s ass.Right?Her steps continue as she ebbs closer and closer and I swallow the lump in my throat. In order for me to gain my freedom, I have to hand her to the kingalive.
Those spiders’ poison is far more lethal than the Grim Reaper’s blade. The king created them and he has a knack for wanting to fill his realm with the most lethal of creatures. Only the initial bite isn’t what kills. It’s the rows upon rows of serrated teeth that will tear flesh from bone and liquidate what’s left in their bows. By the time they’re done, there’s nothing left to regenerate, or to be reborn.
Cursing under my breath as she gets within feet of its hairy backside, I glance at my cuff, gauging my magic. If I use it, she might know about my ruse. That the cuffs don’t take it all away. That I’m not helpless. However, there’s a possibility that she’s still out of it enough she might not notice.
Taking the chance, I teleport, landing right behind her. As my hand wraps around her waist, she yelps just as I clasp my hand over her mouth. Her body goes deathly still as hands flick in every which direction, desperate to know who is touching her.
Using my magic to hide us from sight, I hold her still as the beast flips around, having heard her before I could stop the noise from leaving her lips. Silently, I lift Alice, holding her tight against my body and guiding us toward the nearby tree.
Spiders can’t scent out creatures so much as they have incredible sight. My eyes stay locked on the beast as it attempts to feel around at the ground we just stood in with its hairy long legs, and I don’t breathe until we’re on the other side of the wide girth of the tree.
9
Alice
What–who-how?!
Questions race through my mind as the person holding me pins my body between him and the tree. The bark bites into the palms, scraping through the thin fabric of my shirt as the man’s hand remains clamped tightly over mouth.
It’s official, I can’t see shit. My vision was decent enough to navigate the woods during the day, but at night? I thought the effects of the serpent’s magic would be long gone, but they have almost become stronger. Before I saw objects and details; they were just duplicated. Now, everything is painted in a dark haze and shapes blend together, making it impossible to discern anything beyond what’s directly in front of my face. Even my hearing is impaired, like my head has been shoved underwater.
A hand gently grips my shoulder, urging me to turn around and face my attacker, but the moment I catch a glimpse of the molten amber, my heart takes on a new cadence. He found me.
I should want to run, to kick, fight, and scream until I can break free of his hold, but after everything, I can’t help but be happy and at ease for him to be here. Somehow, just his proximity can make every nerve and muscle that’s been strung tight dissipate, as if I know he’ll keep me safe.
The oracle spoke of his magic causing seductive effects, and of how being a witch meant they’d be exaggerated, but I highly underestimated it. Especially when all of me is already so drawn to Kai on a microscopic level, pulling us together like magnets because of our power and the bond our souls share. My thighs pinch together as my chin tips up, yearning to feel his lips on mine. It’s as if I drank the spiked punch during one of the castle balls.
I can barely make out the round amber shape of his eyes, still seeing an echo as they flick back and forth between my own. He came for me, and I know it means Finn will be a lost cause, that the fates pushed him to, but something about it gives me hope that I haven’t royally fucked up our relationship in order to save one man. Kai could’ve fought off the allure, the craving to come after me, but he didn’t. He’s here in the flesh, inches away from my being, and yet not close enough.
It sends terror rolling through me, yet warms my heart until it feels like it may explode with giddiness. It’s such a hot-and-cold tornado that I’m at odds on which way to go. To run, to kiss him, to–
Kai grips my hand, threading our fingers together before removing the one covering my mouth. Little by little, I make out the silhouetted shape of a finger pressed to his lip, warning me to stay quiet. “It’s a good thing you had the sense to cast.”
I did what?
I hear him huff. “You made yourself invisible, and I’m joyriding your spell to hide too,” he explains in a snarled whisper.
Cocking my head… When did I use magic? I don’t remember casting any spell, let alone needing to. Dubbing it useless, I shake my head. “You shouldn’t have come for me,” I whisper, knowing it’s pointless to argue. Kai will drag me back to the castle if he has to. My name is permanently on his shit list and his godawful tone is proof of it.
He tips his head, looking down on me as his brow scrunches, then leans in close, putting his lips right by her ear. “I know you’re high as fuck, but you’re not whispering.Shhh.”
His breath dances over my skin, feather-light against my neck, and I tilt to the right, giving him better access. I want his lips on mine or against my skin. I want his kisses, his touch. Fuck, I want it all and he’s so close… Maybe he just needs a push. He’s been pissed before and still caved to the pull between us.
I whimper softly, grabbing onto the back of his neck and threading my fingers into his hair. Holding his face to the crook of my neck, I nip his ear, praying he takes the fucking hint. It won’t be the first time we fucked in the woods and likely won’t be our last. “You can go back to hating me tomorrow, but please… I need this.”
I let him go and Kai jerks backward, replacing the sliver of space between us, even if he is still pressing me into the rough bark of the tree. Even if his hand is still threaded with mine. His tongue darts out, swiping between his full lips as his gaze drops, rolling down my neck before he catches himself and meets my eyes once more.
“Alice… I’m not your prince.” Leaves shuffle in the wind, and Kai peers around the tree trunk, looking past it. When his attention turns back to me, he steps closer, dipping his head against my shoulder. “Don’t try to kill me.” He places his hand over my mouth again, still holding on to my hand. Only his grip isn’t gentle, it’s tight as if he might lose me should the wind blow the wrong way.
Taking the opportunity that he’s clearly trying to deprive himself of, I let my free hand roam down his chest, slipping below the hem of his dark shirt and up his sculpted abs, before dipping lower and slipping my fingers around the waistband of his pants.
He snorts out a breath, his muscles flexing tight, and I take it as a sign I’m on the right track. Kai’s jaw hammers against my cheek. And for the first time since I’ve met the man, he hasn’t just taken what he wants. He’s letting me. In the past, he’s tried letting me take control and do as I please to him, but usually his alpha persona takes over and snaps him out of it.
Kai’s never just let me tease him before–beyond the time I unknowingly was drugged at my first castle ball–and for some reason, I’m loving it. Maybe it’s because he knows the oracle’s magic is still in effect. He’s trying to be a gentleman.
My fingers dip lower until I can wrap my hand around his large, hard as stone cock, and the sound of his teeth grinding together hits my ears. He sucks in a breath, removing the hand from my mouth to crush his lips to mine. Just when I think he’s about to cave and give in, he snatches my wrist, pulling my hand away, and pinning both of my arms to the tree. My eyes flutter closed, as I arch against him, but his continue to keep watch, peering beyond the tree. I kiss across his jaw, dragging my lips down the length of his neck, inhaling deeply.
My spine stiffens as I slowly lean back and look at his face. “Why do you smell different?” Kai glances off toward the woods, looking for something. It’s only then that my vision clears enough to see the jagged scar running across his cheek and the white of his eye. “You!” I snap, but his hand shoots up to cover my mouth again.
