by Melissa Haag
Rather than texting, I untangled from Fenris and moved away to call. Mrs. Quill answered on the second ring.
“Eliana? Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. I’d like to invite Jenna, Willow, and Laurel over after school, but because of Raiden’s current attitude toward me, they’re not sure their parents will approve. Would you be willing to call each of them and assure them it wouldn’t be for anything more than movies and normal girl time? No feedings.”
“Oh, my darling. Of course I can. I’ll have snacks ready for you in the game room when you get home.”
“Thank you,” I said sincerely. “Oh, um, was the couch cleaned?”
She promised she’d had both the game room and Oanen’s room thoroughly cleaned after all the company had left.
When I turned back to look at the three girls, they were grinning and bouncing on their toes.
“They have to say yes if it comes from Mrs. Quill, right?” Laurel asked.
“I think so,” Willow agreed, her smirk firmly in place.
We stayed in the pool room until the bell rang then joined the rest of the student body in the mass exodus to the cafeteria. They all went through the line for food this time and joined Eugene at the table where he had another stack of sandwiches. Despite the food on their trays, they all grabbed for one.
Laurel made a comment about food at my place after school, which caught Eugene’s attention, and he turned his pleading gaze on me.
“Am I invited?” he asked.
“It’s going to be just us girls,” Jenna said.
“Perfect.” His grin widened, and I sensed his growing lust. “We could invite Kelsey and Zoe, too.”
Fenris’s thumb stroked mine under the table. That small gesture meant everything to me. Despite the day he’d been having, he’d sensed my distress and immediately lent his support. He wasn’t the only one.
“You might want to tone it down, Eugene,” Willow said. “Eliana’s eyes are flickering.”
“Sorry, Eliana,” Eugene said quickly. “I promise to be one of the girls tonight.”
I could feel the hope rolling off of him and started to cave.
“Okay. See if Kelsey and Zoe want to join in, and let me know so I can call Mrs. Quill. She’ll want to make sure there’s enough food for everyone.”
When the bell rang, the rest of our group went to class, and Fenris and I returned to the pool.
“The whole point of coming here was so you could eat,” Fenris said, tugging me onto his lap. “Stop nibbling and eat, Eliana.”
I wrinkled my nose at him.
“It’s a lot easier when it’s just the two of us.”
“Or maybe Aubrey’s reaction momentarily undermined your confidence. Are you going to let her have that power over you?”
“I’m well aware of when I’m being manipulated, Fenris.”
He leaned in and playfully licked my nose.
“What are you going to do about it?”
I cupped his face in my hands and considered him. What he felt wrapped around me more tightly than his arms. Worry. Always a thread of that. But love. So much love. Had it always been there, hiding under the considerable amount of his ever-present lust? There was no denying how much his lust tempted me. It was like setting dessert in front of a starving teen. Where that was intense and distracting, his love was just the opposite. It was gentle and supporting and deserved so much more than what I’d been giving in return.
What was I going to do about that?
I desperately wanted to give something worthy back. While there were a number of different ways my kind could bring joy, physical release being the most gratifying to many, I knew that wasn’t his deepest desire. And that’s what I wanted to give him.
Opening myself, I sought what he really wanted from me. I thought it would be the mate run but, instead, found something far more terrifying. He wanted me to show the world he was mine. He wanted me to stake my claim on him in front of everyone. And often.
He didn’t care if I acted like a jealous girlfriend or not, but he desperately wanted me to be possessive of him. Publicly.
“Why are you starting to panic?” he asked. “Do you want to go somewhere quieter?”
Heart racing, I shook my head. Quieter was the opposite of what he wanted, but he would give me that because he thought it was what I needed. I didn’t, I only preferred it. While I stared at him, I sensed the mermaids in the pools. They weren’t really paying attention to us. There weren’t any people roaming the halls. It was just us.
“I love you, Fenris,” I whispered before touching my lips to his.
He groaned loudly as I started to feed. His hands ran over my arms and back like he couldn’t get enough of me. I opened my mouth and gave more. The first touch of his tongue to mine sent me spiraling. My fingers slid into his hair, and I shifted positions on his lap, straddling him and deepening the kiss. Fenris was my air. My life. Everything I needed.
If loving Fenris was a sin, I welcomed hell with open arms.
Breaking off the kiss and throwing my head back, I gulped down what he offered me. The ravenous feeding reminded me of the cake dreams. The rich spice of his devotion coated my tongue, and I didn’t ever want to stop greedily drinking it in.
Fenris shook beneath me and guided my lips back to his. I wanted more. So much more.
This time, Fenris broke away, his hand gripping the back of my head firmly as he pressed his forehead to mine.
“It feels like I’ve silently loved you for an eternity. I dreamed of a time when you’d finally love me in return, and now that it’s here, I’m terrified I’m going to wake up and find out that none of this is real.”
His words penetrated my feeding haze, and I soothingly ran my hands over his chest.
“It’s real. I’m not going anywhere.”
I could sense the thread of his doubt a moment before he spoke.
“Are you sure? Aubrey isn’t going to make anything easy between now and Saturday. Neither will my dad.”
“I know, but I’m done running from everything. I’m going to save it for when it really counts.” I playfully licked his nose. “Don’t worry, I’ll wear red.”
He groaned and hugged me close.
“I’m thinking about becoming a leg humper,” he said into my neck.
I laughed and ran my hands over his back.
“I doubt that would be the worst thing you’ve done.”
“You’d be right.”
My grin slowly faded as doubt crept in. He inhaled deeply and pulled back to look at me.
“What are you thinking now?”
“I’m wondering what the expectation is for this Saturday. Am I going to be wearing red?”
The tremor wracking his body increased in intensity.
“I’d love nothing more than to see us fully mated. But not in the woods, and not this Saturday. You’ve come a long way, but I know you’ll always be uncomfortable with group nudity. I don’t want our mating tainted by fear or worry.”
“Then maybe we go somewhere else. Maybe before Saturday so you don’t have to run at all.”
He made a pained noise, and I could feel his heart thundering against me.
“I love the way you slowly torture me. You’re so giving. Never stop being you. But I think we’ve conceded enough to appease the other people in our lives, don’t you?” he said, proving my guess right. “I want this to be on our terms. However long it takes for it to feel like the “right” time to us is how long it takes. You’re worth waiting for, Eliana.”
I lifted my lips to his and kissed him sweetly. Then I snuggled close, letting him hold me tightly until the shaking I’d caused eased.
A sudden burst of hostile conversation echoed around the pool room as the doors opened.
“I’m telling you they fucked with your head, Jannette. The druids have been doing that for weeks now to cover up for—”
Eras’s eyes narrowed, and his face flushed as he spotted me in
Fenris’s arms.
“Speak of the succubitch, and she appears.”
Only my tight hold on Fenris kept him sitting.
“I warned you, Eras,” he growled.
Eras inhaled deeply.
“She already has you primed. Good. I’m going to enjoy this.”
He opened his mouth.
That dark thing inside of me surged forward. I didn’t stand. There was no menacing posturing. I didn’t need it.
“Remember your lost meal, Eras,” I said.
Immediate understanding lit his gaze. Not only did he remember the meal but he could now compare the energy of the one who stole it to what lingered around me from feeding from Fenris.
“I knew it was you.”
His rage built for a moment and then floundered.
“How did you do that? Have you been screwing with all our heads this whole time?”
“What’s going on?” River asked, swimming to the edge of the pool.
“Are you still keeping your journals?” he asked. “You hate Eliana and the druids for wiping our minds, but you’re swimming around as if the enemy isn’t sitting right there.” He thrust a finger in my direction.
River scowled at him.
“Yes, I’m still writing it all down. And thank the gods, too. Now, I can see exactly when I pulled my head out of my fin. Eliana isn’t the enemy, Eras, and hating on her isn’t going to make my life better. With her help, and maybe Megan’s, my real enemy will be dealt with.”
“Bullshit! She brainwashed you.” He turned to me, his rage fully recovered. “I don’t know what kind of freak you are, but you’re no succubus. The Council will—”
“Be quiet and listen well for a moment.” The softly spoken words stopped all noise. I felt the thing inside of me, pushing to show him, all of them, my real power, but I didn’t let it control me.
“I am not your enemy, Eras. When I fed that night, I didn’t realize I was stealing your meal and have regretted it ever since. However, my mistake doesn’t give you the right to continue to spread your hate. Forgive me or don’t. But know that I will not tolerate any more of your insolence. Threaten what is mine again, and you will spend the rest of your life thinking you’re a squirrel in a cage.”
Eras blinked at me, and for a few seconds, his feelings remained unchanged. Until fear bloomed slowly in his eyes.
“I forgive you.”
He pivoted on his heel and all but ran from the room.
“Are you okay?” Fenris asked.
I gave the question due consideration before I answered.
“I am. This time, I knew what was happening and was more careful. And instead of forcing him to believe something, I let him choose.”
“I think you helped him decide when you mentioned the squirrel. Although, I would have given it a special Fenris flare.”
“Do I even want to know?”
He grinned at me. “Rather than thinking he’s in a cage, I would have told him he’s a squirrel after his own nuts.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
My phone buzzed as I was sitting in the game room with everyone. I quickly reached for it and saw Megan’s name on the screen.
Megan: It’s unlikely I’d get to send Aubrey to hell. Although eating human flesh is against the law, it’s considered a minor infraction. Now, if she had killed the human, that would be a different story because killing humans, according to human law, is a grave infraction.
Me: Thanks for answering. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow! I have some fun stories to tell.
“Is that Fenris?” Jenna asked.
“No. Megan. Still nothing from Fenris.”
“He had to make it by now, right?” Laurel asked, nibbling on a slice of sausage.
Willow grabbed a handful of grapes from the snack tray and shrugged.
“Maybe he locked himself out of your phone or something?”
“Is he eighty or eighteen?” Kelsey asked. “No one our age locks themselves out of an unlocked phone.”
Jenna and Zoe snickered while the rest of us grinned.
“She’s right. He wouldn’t self-sabotage like that,” I said.
“Yep. More than likely, Aubrey got mad and pulled Raiden in somehow.”
Which had been my fear when Fenris had initially offered to drive the convertible home. As much as I’d hated the idea of him facing Aubrey on his own, I also knew how much the girls wanted to avoid her. Therefore, I’d gone along with the plan and given the group a ride here so they could evade Aubrey as long as possible.
“I’m just glad our phones aren’t buzzing with messages from Raiden, telling us to head home,” Jenna said seconds before hers vibrated.
She glanced down at the screen.
“Fenris made it. Aubrey’s pissed and claiming we’ve betrayed her. Raiden is fine with us being here and says to thank Laurel for loaning Fenris her phone.”
Willow let out a frustrated growl. “Of course. Why wouldn’t Raiden be fine with us distracting Eliana from Fenris for a while?”
“We should ask if we can spend the night. I bet our parents would say yes.”
Laurel’s suggestion had them all fast-talking excitedly, especially Eugene, Kelsey and Zoe. I hesitated to share their excitement.
Would it be safe for them to sleep here? It could be. If I closed the doors between my room and theirs and if Eugene kept his word, it should be fine. Yet a level of worry remained. As Fenris had proven, my control was at its weakest when I slept. Those accidental feedings on top of knowing the full extent of what I could do didn’t give me any confidence in how well the sleepover would work.
“You’re awfully quiet,” Kelsey said, looking at me. “We didn’t mean to invite ourselves.”
I gave her a small smile.
“I wouldn’t mind the company. I’m just not sure where you’d all sleep.”
“Humans in Oanen’s room and pack in here,” Jenna said.
It would put the werewolves closer to me and protect the humans. I liked it.
Six sets of pleading gazes locked on me, and I grinned.
“Ask your parents, and I’ll ask Mrs. Quill about you three,” I said looking at Kelsey.
Mrs. Quill was ecstatic about my first “group” gathering and promised that the humans would be completely safe. She didn’t even bat an eye when I told her I wasn’t inciting an orgy.
“Of course you’re not, my darling. That isn’t your style. But this is so healthy for you and just as good.”
It was no surprise when Mom texted me a while later, telling me how proud she was of me in every way. I smirked and could only imagine how she would react when I told her I’d purposely mind-controlled Eras into remembering and had accidentally swayed the opinions of all the mermaids in the pools.
While Eugene, Kelsey, and Zoe ran home for overnight supplies, the girls and I picked out our selection of movies. They were lounging in my loaned pajamas by the time the other three returned.
“You will not believe what the fuckboy from next door did,” Zoe said, grinning like crazy. “He yelled at Kelsey to get off his lawn.”
Zoe and Eugene laughed hard while Kelsey rolled her eyes.
“Whatever type of creature he is, perpetual anger has to be a trait. His lawn is snow-covered, and the only reason I walked on it was to get my scarf that the wind blew off of me.”
“Hotness rules out trolls,” Willow said.
“Eras is an ass. Maybe the guy is an incubus.”
“No,” Zoe said quickly. “He’s never made a pass at either of us.”
I made a mental note to remember to ask Mrs. Quill about their neighbor before the girls left in the morning.
Sweets dangled from the branches. The varieties of lemon cake and baklava didn’t make me pause. I ate them all ravenously, inhaling every delicious crumb, only slowing to run my tongue through the lemon curd. When the trees started to shake, I grinned and kept eating.
“I know what you’re doing,” the trees said.
It only made me laugh, grab a piece of baklava dripping with honey, and lick that, too. The ground trembled beneath my feet, and the cakes changed slightly. The baklava disappeared, replaced by spice cake with whipped frosting. Just enough to drag my tongue through.
“Everyone should play with their food like you do.” The forest groaned, a sign that I’d played enough.
Still licking the frosting, I forced myself to wake up. Fenris hovered above me, braced on his forearms. I’d managed to push his shirt up to caress his skin while I’d been nibbling and licking his throat. I felt no embarrassment this time, discovering we were in the same position Mom had once found us. There was only worry.
“What time is it?” I asked.
“Just after midnight.”
“Fenris, that was one of the best dreams I’ve ever had, but how much trouble are you going to be in for sneaking away? Your dad is going to track you here.”
“Don’t talk. More tongue and teeth. Lots of teeth, please.”
I nipped his collarbone through his shirt, and he made a pained sound.
“Wrap your legs around my waist.”
“First, answer the question.”
A frustrated groan escaped him before he set his forehead against mine.
“I came here with Dad. Megan’s back with news about the Kraken. She sent me to wake you up.”
“Fenris!”
“No, don’t move. That’s only going to make things worse. Lie still and talk dirty to me.”
“That’s not going to help.”
“Of course it is. Rancid pickles, moldy dishrags, Old Fitzer’s outhouse…every single one of those smells is a mood killer for me.”
He lifted his head to focus on me and quirked a grin. “Or were you thinking of the other kind of dirty?”
I rolled my eyes and gave his chest a shove.
“Gods know how long you’ve already been in here. Move, Fenris. We’re still going to get in trouble.”
He reluctantly got off of me, and I ignored his lower half as I threw back the covers.
“Don’t bother changing,” Fenris said. “You look cute and innocent in that. Better to catch them off guard.”
