“I know, but if it comes down to you or them, I’ll choose you.” He glances at me with no remorse in his expression. “And I know every wolf with us will agree.”
He’s right, but that doesn’t mean I agree with all of them. After what I saw and did this morning, I’d risk my life if it meant the vines released their grasp on the city.
A handful of miles later, we reach the portal to the Willow Realm. The entryway is unguarded, all swirls and bright colors of faerie dust magic.
Jules goes through the portal with me, where nightfall awaits us on the other side. The inadequate moon and starlight give me hardly any chance to fully take in the realm of the fey. From what I can tell, the field is sprinkled with firefly glow, glittery magic, and dusted with a slash of shooting stars that cascade across the towering hills and the waterfalls.
A beautiful place, I’m guessing, except for the vines that ghost the borders of the land, reminding me of what lies ahead if we can’t find Star and the rest of the nature energy creatures.
Because we’re faster in wolf form, we decide to shift and carry our bags in our mouths. Legend will carry Jules’ mom.
Protectively, Jules leads me behind a tree out of the sight of others and helps me strip out of my clothes.
“Will you help me shift again?” I ask as I tug his shirt over his head.
“Of course.” His lips burn against mine as he kisses me. “You won’t have to feel a thing.”
If only that were the case with everything.
Then again, everything would include how I feel for him and that I want to feel forever.
“When we get to this place, what will we do?” I ask as I unfasten his belt.
“Legend said he’d search for Star, right?” He watches me as I unzip his pants.
I nod. “He said he’d set off for the Sun Moon portal as soon as he drops us off at this faerie’s place.”
“Good. And while he’s gone, we’ll train. We’ll train harder than we ever have, so if we’re found, we can protect ourselves. We’ll also search for followers, creatures who are against the vines and want to help. We’ll have to be careful, but I know there has to be so many out there who will side with us.”
“How will we know which ones we can trust?”
“We might have to seek out an energy reader.”
“What are those? They sound an awful lot like nature energy creatures.”
“They’re kind of the same in a way, I guess, except for, instead of connecting with the energy of plants, they connect with the energy of creatures, so they can tell what they’re feeling, if they’re lying, if they’re scared. They’re rare, but I might have a few ideas on where to find one—” He cuts himself off with a groan as I tug down his pants, my fingers grazing his length. “Lake,” he moans a helpless plea. “As much as I love you touching me, we don’t have time for this right now.”
“I know.” But I still pout. I’m not even sure why, other than my wolf wants him and I can’t think clearly when she’s stirring with desire.
Sighing, he brushes his lips against mine. “When we get to this place, I promise we can do whatever you want.”
I nearly eat him alive right then and there. Luckily, he has more self-control. Well, sort of. After kissing and touching me until I’m breathless, Jules pulls away, but only when Shade shouts for us to get our asses moving.
With a deep, husky sigh, he turns me around and uses his gift to help me shift. I wait for him to transform, too, then we take off into the night with the rest of the werewolves and my vampire friend, running from the past and chasing a future I hope we can find.
Chapter 43
The faery’s place is in the heart of a thick forest, the wooden structure carved into the trees and branches. The moment we step inside, I feel right at home amongst the leaves, branches, and flowery vines. So does everyone else, apparently, since Liberty, Rune, Shade, and Kylan all start bickering over who gets the room with the window roof. While the room sounds lovely, I’m too damn exhausted to battle it out with them.
The owner of the house—Phoenix—isn’t home, but Legend insists that he knows where to find him and that he’ll stop by to tell him we’re staying here on his way to the Sun Moon portal.
“You’re leaving right now?” I ask as Legend slips on his backpack.
“The longer I stay here, the more time is wasted.” He kisses me on the cheek then heads through the small living room to the front door. “I promise I’ll be back as soon as I find her.”
I follow him to the wooden front door. “Will you be able to get ahold of us?”
“I might be able to send a few messages, but the more I stay in contact, the easier it’ll be for a creature to find you.” He wraps his hand around the doorknob, giving me one final goodbye glance. “I’ll see you soon, Lake.”
When I blink, he’s gone.
Tears sting my eyes as I stare at the empty space before me. Legend always told me he was terrible at saying goodbye.
“He’ll be fine.” Jules joins my side, guiding my head to his chest. “Legend is an ancient vampire; he’s more than capable of handling this.”
“I know.” I clutch the bottom of his shirt as I sniffle. “I just keep thinking about how your father managed to capture him to get to me. What if he finds him again?”
“Lake, he’ll be safer in the Sun Moon Realm. No werewolf can touch him there.”
“I still worry about him.”
“So do I, but I’m also worried about you.” He smooths his hand over the back of my head. “You haven’t said much about what happened back in the woods … with Slate and my traitor guards.”
I suck in a shallow breath. “I feel guilty,” I admit. “Partially for what I did and partially because a small part of me doesn’t even feel bad about it.”
“You shouldn’t feel bad about it,” he whispers against my forehead. “Slate and my guards deserved what they got. And you saved all our lives, Lake. Your gift—you—are amazing. Never think otherwise.”
“I’ll try.” I squeeze my eyes shut. “It might take some time.”
“That’s understandable. Just know that you won’t be in this alone. We’ll all be here for you. Just tell me what you need—anything—and it’s yours.”
I hug my arms around him. “Will you help me forget for a while, both in reality and in my dreams?”
“Of course.” He angles my head back and sears the pain inside me with a kiss.
Without breaking the connection, he backs me through the house and into a …
I pull away, blinking at the window above. “You got the window room?”
His face is a shadow against the starlight trickling through the windows, but his violet eyes are an entirely different story. “I made them give it to me. Thought you might like the view.”
I peer up at the sky, obscured by tree branches. “It’s perfect.” You’re perfect. “Jules, I meant what I said in the forest. I love you. Nothing has changed.”
“I love you, too. Always have. Always will.”
He lays me down on the pillow bed, strips me bare, and makes love to me until I can barely think about anything else. Only his mouth on mine, his teeth sinking into my skin, his hips rocking against mine as he pushes me toward a place where nothing exists. Only us.
When I finally drift to sleep, he meets me in my dreams, and we repeat our love making beneath the stars and the moon until the sun rises.
I fight the urge to wake up, begging for a bit longer. Begging for a little bit of peace with Jules before I wake up and start training to save the future of our realms.
About the Author
About the Author
Jessica Sorensen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who lives in the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she’s not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.
Also by Jessica Sorensen
Other books by Jessica Sorensen:
Tangled Realms:
Foreve
r Violet
Untitled (Legend’s story) (coming soon)
Curse of the Vampire Queen:
Tempting Raven
Untitled (coming soon)
Bad Boy Rebels:
Discovering Zhara: Kissing Benton
Discovering Zhara: Meeting the Bad Boy Rebels
Discovering Zhara: Going Undercover
Discovering Zhara: Bad Girl Training
Discovering Alexis: The Wildly Crazy Day
Untitled (coming soon)
Shadow Cove Series:
What Lies in the Darkness
What Lies in the Dark (coming soon)
Mystic Willow Bay Witches Series:
The Secret Life of a Witch
Broken Magic
Stolen Kisses
One Wild, Crazy, Zombie Night
Untitled (coming soon)
Standalones:
The Forgotten Girl
The Illusion of Annabella
Confessions of a Kleptomaniac
Rules of a Rebel and a Shy Girl
The Opposite of Ordinary
Broken City Series:
Nameless
Forsaken
Oblivion
Forbidden (coming soon)
Guardian Academy Series:
Entranced
Entangled
Enchanted
Entice (coming soon)
Sunnyvale Series:
The Year I Became Isabella Anders
The Year of Falling in Love
The Year of Second Chances
Unraveling You Series:
Unraveling You
Raveling You
Awakening You
Inspiring You
Fated by Darkness
Untitled (coming soon)
The Coincidence Series:
The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden
The Redemption of Callie and Kayden
The Destiny of Violet and Luke
The Probability of Violet and Luke
The Certainty of Violet and Luke
The Resolution of Callie and Kayden
Seth & Greyson
The Secret Series:
The Prelude of Ella and Micha
The Secret of Ella and Micha
The Forever of Ella and Micha
The Temptation of Lila and Ethan
The Ever After of Ella and Micha
Lila and Ethan: Forever and Always
Ella and Micha: Infinitely and Always
The Shattered Promises Series:
Shattered Promises
Fractured Souls
Unbroken
Broken Visions
Scattered Ashes
Breaking Nova Series:
Breaking Nova
Saving Quinton
Delilah: The Making of Red
Nova and Quinton: No Regrets
Tristan: Finding Hope
Wreck Me
Ruin Me
The Fallen Star Series:
The Fallen Star
The Underworld
The Vision
The Promise
The Fallen Souls Series (spin-off from The Fallen Star):
The Lost Soul
The Evanescence
The Darkness Falls Series:
Darkness Falls
Darkness Breaks
Darkness Fades
The Death Collectors Series (NA and YA):
Ember X and Ember
Cinder X and Cinder
Spark X and Spark
Unbeautiful Series:
Unbeautiful
Untamed
Forever Violet Page 30
