Chapter 19
ASHLEY
A doorman opened the giant double front doors on Blackwell House. Ashley and Lola entered into the grand foyer. Blues jazz filtered into the hall from multiple different directions. Ashley tried to recall exactly where she’d gone the night before when she’d been here. Had someone escorted her through the house? Or had she found her own way?
She couldn’t remember now. It all seemed a blur.
Laughter filled in the spaces between musical notes so Lola and Ash followed its direction and found themselves in a billiards room. There were three green-felt tables lined up in front of huge floor-to-ceiling windows. Golden string lights glittered in the garden beyond the windows and people spilled out the open French doors.
Two games were currently in the middle of play, while a tall, extremely muscular man racked the balls on the third table. “I think that’s Mad Blackwell,” Lola whispered and nodded at the man who looked like a warrior in the wrong century. His left arm was covered in a sleeve of colorful tattoos.
Ashley eyed him from across the room as he set the billiards balls on the table. He worked with quick precision as if every little movement were purposeful and calculated. His hair, auburn in the overhead light, hung loose and overgrown around his face. When he straightened, he ran a hand back through it tucking it behind his ear. A group of women stood behind him admiring his ass as he bent to line up a shot.
“He’s the oldest, isn’t he?” Ashley said.
“Mad is the oldest, yeah,” Lola said. “I mean based on what I’ve read. I think Thorin is next?” She nodded at the taller man with a scruffy blond beard. “I guess if they’re all magical beings they could be any age. Jinn are supposed to be immortal, right?”
Somehow Lola had caught on to that fact a lot earlier than Ashley had. “That’s what I hear,” she answered.
“My mind is blowing right now. This whole thing is seriously blowing my mind. I knew there was more to the world. I knew it.”
“Knew what?” Thorin came up beside them, a beer in his hand.
“Oh, just...you know...” Lola waved her hand through the air like she was gesturing at the drapes or something. “Ashley was just telling me this magnificent house was built in the 1800s and I said, I knew it was based on the architecture!”
Thorin smiled. “Do you know a lot about 18th century architecture?”
God, up close he was even better looking. Ashley could see similarities between him and Dae. They both had that strong jawline and sharp nose. But Thorin was dirty blond, while Dae’s hair was dark brown. She couldn’t quite tell who was the older brother. Thorin had that scruffy goatee look going for him and Dae was always clean shaven. Thorin seemed a bit more genuine in all of his expressions though, like he wasn’t quite as guarded as Dae was.
That led Ashley to think maybe he was younger.
Lola was starting to sweat beneath Thorin’s piercing green eyes. She giggled and said, “I do know my Corinthian columns from my Doric!”
“Those Doric columns,” Thorin said. “So pedestrian.”
Lola rolled her eyes. “Exactly what I was thinking.”
They were both smiling at each other. Had Ashley just become the third wheel? She cleared her throat. “Is Dae here somewhere?”
Thorin looked over at her. “Still upstairs, I think. He takes a little longer to preen than the rest of us. Being good looking comes naturally to most Blackwells. But our dear brother Dae, not so much.”
Ashley didn’t want to laugh, but she couldn’t stop the rise of it in her throat. She liked that the brothers had this playfulness about them. She’d seen something similar at Café on the Rise between Dae and Poe, though their relationship did seem to have a bit more of an edge to it.
Being an only child, Ashley had always longed for siblings. She would have taken fighting and bickering if it meant she had family that was solely hers.
“You’re more than welcome to head to his room,” Thorin said and gestured to the back stairwell just outside the billiards room. “He wouldn’t mind.”
“Oh no, I’ll wait. But thank you.”
Thorin nodded. “Can I get you ladies drinks?”
They followed him across the room to the full-service bar where a bartender was busy mixing drinks for a couple of girls Ashley felt like she should know. The girls eyed Thorin and whispered to each other.
What were they saying? Did they know the Blackwells intimately? Were they invited to all of their house parties? Or had they made deals in the past? How did you even move forward with your life after having made a deal with an immortal jinn?
It hadn’t dawned on her until that moment that her relationship with Dae had an expiration date.
Would he forget about her once the deal was done?
Her heart sank at the thought. She quickly buried it down deep. None of that mattered right now. She still had two wishes left!
After serving the two ladies, the bartender greeted them. “Mr. Blackwell,” the man said. “What can I get for you?”
“These ladies would like drinks, I suspect.”
“What do you have?” Lola asked.
The bartender smiled. “I have just about anything you’d like.”
Which seemed a true statement based just on the liquor bottles lining the back of the bar. There were several bottles of tequila, some of them so top shelf, Ashley never could have afforded a shot of it at a regular bar. There were mid-shelf vodkas and infused vodkas. Gin and rum and Scotch whisky.
“I’m driving,” Lola said. “So maybe a spritzer?”
“I won’t force you to drink,” Thorin said, “but we’ve hired private drivers tonight if you’d like to imbibe.”
Lola looked up at him with stars in her eyes. She loved it when a man used obscure words. It was like number two on her Ten Signs I Will Like a Man list. Which meant if Lola stuck to her code, she would never cross intimate lines with Thorin. She once told Ashley, “There are men I like and men I sleep with and no in-between. Feelings make things complicated.”
Lola bit her lower lip. “I do enjoy a good single malt whisky.”
“And for you?” Thorin asked Ashley.
She was about to ask for a glass of wine when the volume of the room dropped like the King of England had just walked through the door.
Ashley followed the attention of the room to the doorway and…
She sucked in a breath.
It was Dae.
Every part of her body tingled at the sight of him.
He was in a tailored black suit that showed off the hard cut of his shoulders and the rise and fall of his biceps. He wore no tie and the top two buttons of his shirt were undone allowing just a sliver of his tattoos to peek out.
In the golden overhead lights, his dark hair shone slick like he’d just gotten out of the shower. That brought an image to mind of Dae beneath a showerhead coated in steam and hot water and nothing else.
Ashley pressed her thighs together as her sex tingled and at that exact moment, Dae’s attention cut her way sharply like…oh God, like he knew.
Did he know?
Dae’s eyes flashed red and Ashley felt the warmth of wetness spreading between her legs.
Shit.
Shit!
Breathe.
There was no way he could know he was coaxing that kind of a response from her. Right? This wasn’t the animal kingdom.
She took in another settling breath as Dae made his way across the room.
All of the women followed his movements, but his eyes, his beautiful eyes were only on her.
Ashley’s boss at her last job had once told her that power was a thing felt, not seen. That it wasn’t something you could put a face or a name to.
He’d clearly never met someone like Dae. If he had, and if he could see Dae as Ashley did now, he would have known what power looked like as it walked through the door.
Every part of her body was buzzing followed by the strong urge to stake her claim.
>
She wanted to show the other women that Dae was hers.
She felt reckless and dizzy with the need.
The only thing that stopped her was Lola’s hand at her wrist and her whispered words at her ear, “If you don’t fuck that man, I will start to question your sensibility.”
Ashley swallowed.
Dae said, “Hello, love,” as he came up beside her. A lock of his hair fell roguishly over his forehead as he drank her in from the point of her high heels to the heat of the blush on her cheeks. “You look spectacular.”
She’d chosen another dress to wear tonight since he’d already seen her in the lacey black one. She wanted to surprise him.
The dress she’d chosen was plain black, but it was the low-cut V at the center of it that made it sexier than anything she’d ever worn. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and half of her boobs were on display and though Dae tried to be a gentleman, she could feel his eyes lingering on the swell of her breasts.
Her inner walls clenched.
Dae grabbed her free hand and pressed his lips to her knuckles. His kiss was gentle, his lips warm against her skin. He lingered there and inhaled as he pinned his eyes on hers.
Her sex throbbed beneath his gaze.
What was going on with her?
She never got this worked up without a little coaxing.
Dae had barely touched her.
It must be the magic.
“This dress is even better than the first,” he said.
“Thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself.”
He gave her a wry smile. “Careful, love,” he said. “You keep talking like that, I might start to think you like me.”
God, was it that obvious?
No. She didn’t like him like him. She was still married! She had come to Dae to win her husband back. That was what she needed to focus on. This was just a business deal and Dae was just being nice to her because she was his client.
But if she were being honest, it had been a long time since she felt ignited from the inside out. A long time since her body had tingled without anyone or anything having touched it. James rarely initiated sex with her pleasure in mind. His dick always came first.
“Care for a walk in the twilight?” Dae asked, offering his arm.
“I’d love to.” She looked to Lola for permission. She didn’t want to ditch her friend so quickly.
“Oh, I’ll be just fine,” Lola said with a wink.
“I’ll look after her,” Thorin added.
“If she’s safe with anyone,” Dae said, “it’s Thorin. He saves whales.”
Ashley threaded her arm through Dae’s. His was warm and solid. She could feel the hardness of his bicep through his shirtsleeve. If his arms felt like that, what would his stomach feel like? Did he have the kind of abs that Ashley had only seen on TV? She suddenly wanted to know.
Dae stole her through the open French doors and her high heels clacked on the cobblestone patio. The night had cooled just enough that Ashley snuggled in a bit closer to Dae just for his body heat alone. Crickets and frogs croaked in the shadows and when they stepped off the patio and onto the rocky path that wended through the garden, the sound of the garden quickly took over the music of the party. A full moon hung heavy overhead.
Now outside, Ashley realized she preferred the crickets and the intimate press of the half-darkness to the light and noise of the party. She’d always been introverted. Not that she disliked going out or being around people. She just needed the quiet in order to recharge.
“The garden is beautiful,” Ashley marveled as they followed a line of boxwood hedges. Beds of roses and hydrangeas and coneflowers ran parallel to the hedges perfuming the air with the subtle sweetness of their blooms.
Up ahead, a stone fountain gurgled in the silver light.
“My mother designed this garden,” Dae said. “It’s one of my favorite places.”
“Red told me she died?”
Dae nodded as they paused by the fountain. “It was a long time ago.”
“But you still miss her.”
He looked away. “Very much.”
“What was your favorite thing about her?”
Ashley let go of his arm and sat on the edge of the fountain. The stone was cool beneath her. She looked up at Dae, his dark silhouette rimmed in the pearlescent light of the moon.
“I used to think I loved her tenacity. She was the first woman to earn a degree in Italy and...” He looked at Ashley, realizing he’d said too much.
“It’s okay,” she said. “Red told me you all are immortal.”
Dae breathed out with relief. “Fucking Red.” He shook his head. “What else did he tell you?”
“Ummm...he told me about a jinn’s scent and that I smell like you, apparently.”
He laughed. “We are quite territorial.”
Ashley shifted and ran her hand through the fountain’s water. “Tell me more. About your mother.”
“She was stubborn.” He looked out over the garden, his gaze growing distant. “But I suppose you have to be when you’re the mother of four boys. She didn’t let us get away with much. She loved Italy. She loved the people there. The wine.” He laughed to himself. “She was responsible for a lot of wishes that led to gains in equality and women’s rights. She cast a lot of good wishes. In fact, I’d say she was selfless her entire life.”
“She sounds like an amazing woman.”
“She was.” Hands shoved in his pants pockets, he walked off, skirting the fountain. “You remind me of her.”
“Really? How?”
“Your boldness. Not many women have the guts to show up at our doorstep asking for a deal.” He went around the other side of the fountain, out of sight. “Your kindness. Your ability to see the good in people, even when they don’t deserve it.”
Ashley laughed, incredulous. “That is hardly the case.”
“Then why are you out here in the dark with me?” His voice was suddenly at her ear, his breath on her neck. He’d done that thing where he disappeared and reappeared, seemingly out of the mist.
Startled, Ashley sucked in a breath and turned toward him. She caught the strong scent of cinnamon and cloves. She could practically taste him, his autumn scent. “I don’t think you’ll hurt me,” she said, voice a whisper. She was breathless and a little light-headed.
“No?” His eyes flashed red in the shadows.
“And I don’t think you’d take advantage of me.” She licked her lips. “Even though you could.”
He sat beside her on the fountain’s edge, his chest pressed against her back. “You might be wrong.” His breath caressed the tender flesh of her throat. “Because right now, I want to take you to my room and have my way with you. Because I’ve been thinking about it ever since you stumbled through our door looking vulnerable but determined, like a flower bent against the wind.” His voice was raw. Like rock salt ground against stone.
Ashley could feel the power of the moment. She could tell that for the rest of her life, she would look back on this minute out of a million that made up her life and realize that what she said next would change everything.
Her body buzzed, her ears rang, her mouth was dry and her throat thick.
What was this feeling pounding against her insides?
Was it the magic?
Was it the connection between them?
Ashley had never felt so damn restless.
Never in her life had her body pulsed with a need for someone, anyone. Not like it did for Dae.
How could she turn back now?
The responsible side of her said she had a duty to her marriage to turn around and leave.
But the reckless, hungry part of her wanted more.
She wanted to let go and give in.
She wanted to sink into the pleasure that she had clearly been lacking her entire life.
Because Dae had lit something inside of her that made her feel so damn alive.
She looked right at him as the fountain
’s mist glittered in the moonlight and said, “Then why don’t you take me?”
Apparently that was all the permission he needed.
He grabbed her, scooping her up in his arms. She wrapped her legs around his hips, her dress riding up. She could see his magic, the smoky redness of it against the silver moonlight as the air popped and the fountain disappeared.
But they didn’t go to his bedroom.
He’d taken her further back in the garden. Far, far away from the party. He sat back on his heels in the grass, settling her in his lap, pressing her against the bulge of his cock.
Ashley moaned.
Dae growled, his mouth against her throat, teeth nipping at the bass beat of her heart. His hands sunk to her ass, driving her into him. “I’ve been thinking about that pussy all goddamn day.”
Ashley grew wetter with his words.
God, how did he do that?
“It took everything in me not to touch you. To feel your skin beneath mine.” His hand came up, trailing along her bare shoulder, leaving goosebumps in his wake.
She arched her back as Dae’s mouth sunk lower, down the deep V of her dress’s cut out. Her nipples grew hard and she nearly purred when Dae slid her dress aside, exposing her simultaneously to the chill of the night and the heat of his mouth.
His tongue flicked out, teasing her. She ground against his hardness, driven by a sudden primal need to have him inside her.
“Not yet, love.” He pulled her dress off her shoulders, baring her from the waist up. His hands moved to her back, and for some reason, feeling his fingers on a part of her that wasn’t immediately private, but still somehow intimate, sent a thrill down her spine like the roaring rush of a river carving through stone.
She wanted him now. She was impatient and ravenous, and her entire body trembled with the need. She reached down and grabbed hold of him through his pants, causing him to suck in a breath and pause in his pursuit of her nipples.
“I don’t do things like this.” She put a little pressure on his cock. “If you make me wait longer, I might change my mind.”
It wasn’t a challenge or a threat. It was a fact. Who was she? How had she found herself in this moment and why did she not want it to end? She was simultaneously torn between wanting all of Dae, forever, and running away, back to the safety of her boring life.
Three Wishes (Blackwell Jinn) Page 9
