Windstorm (Nightwraith Book 1)

by Gaja J. Kos

  Fucking Fae.

  I couldn’t believe I came here for nothing.

  No, wait, it wasn’t nothing. After all, I did get a bloody cold shower because of my half-demon blood.

  Lana claimed she couldn’t understand why I chose to live a hermit life. Maybe she had better luck, but, honestly, who in their right mind would willingly throw themselves into all this shit? Before the idea of bashing my head against the counter became too inviting, I ordered that complimentary martini the invitation promised and propped my chin on my hands.

  With nothing else to do while I waited for my darling alcohol to arrive, I stared absentmindedly at the dancer who was twisting her long legs around the pole standing erect on the black, gleaming wood of the bar a few feet away from my spot. I rubbed my temples, only half seeing her seductive moves.

  None of it made sense.

  Lana might not have monitored the brother for long, but she had overheard them talking about the event. And from what she could tell, they were quite eager to delve into the kinky supernatural underground scene Slovenia had to offer. So why miss it? I was positive getting dates wasn’t an obstacle for someone of their power—so why wouldn’t they celebrate their rotten victory with the sexathon the Sunday Seduction offered?

  Just as I wanted to groan in frustration, the waiter, a ruggedly handsome were, handed me my drink with a brilliant smile.

  I could smell the high content of gin even before I brought the glass to my lips, and as the deliciously bitter taste rolled over my tongue, I knew my olfactory senses hadn’t been wrong.

  A man after my own heart, I thought with some amusement as I watched the were who could mix such a mean martini. And yet, despite the eye candy that he was, he stirred absolutely nothing within me.

  However, as I looked past him at the wall-length mirror, something did spark my interest. Or, rather, someone.

  I thanked the bartender for the drink then crossed the room, adding a little extra sway into my hips as I neared my target.

  Naturally, the display caught his attention well before I reached the table. “Liva Kasun. Fancy seeing you here.”

  I smiled at the blond, smug shark that was the largest collector of rare and extremely valuable items in the whole of Central Europe. As careful as the Fae were, there wasn’t a chance in all the realms that something as coveted as a hallow would have slipped the bastard’s notice.

  I motioned to the empty spot on the couch beside him. “Mind if I sit, Peter?”

  Clear green eyes met mine, and the vamp inclined his head. I plopped down on the cushion, mindful to keep my back arched the entire time, showing off the goods to the rotten slimeball. It certainly wasn’t one of my proudest moments, and I knew I’d need to take a long shower afterwards to wash away his leering, but I needed him to not see me as the “stuck up antique empath”—his words, not mine—but rather a woman with assets that played to his taste.

  Judging by the grin he just flashed me, my approach was working, too.

  I shuddered inwardly. The things I did for the future of the Fae realm… My rate wasn’t nearly high enough.

  Peter Kokel stretched his arm along the backrest, his fingers brushing against my loose curls, but, luckily, not my skin. “As pleased as I am to bump into you,” he drawled, teeth biting his lower lip, “I do have to ask… What are you doing here?”

  I batted my long eyelashes at him, amping up the whole Barbie angle—precisely his drug of choice. My magic picked up on his growing intrigue, but the sensation was met by an ethereal punch to the gut. My energy’s gut that was.

  Pretending to play coy, I scanned the room, following the familiar imprint of the wave of violence I’d felt.

  Sure enough, Cian was standing by the bar, his purple eyes magnetic with fire that promised nothing less than a most excruciatingly painful death.

  Oh, yes, the Fae was pissed. But he was also wise enough not to intervene.

  I wasn’t entirely certain if I wouldn’t let my demonic side out to play if he decided to crash the party. Not only was I doing all this shit to help his case, but Cian sure as fuck had no right to prevent me from seducing whoever I wanted.

  Though the thought of Peter in a compromised position made me gag internally, it was beside the point. Cian had made the boundary between us perfectly clear. And now he had to stick with it.

  Before my brain got the chance to dwell on the implications of the Fae’s outburst of anger any longer that it already had, I focused my attention back on the vampire at hand.

  I ran my fingers lightly down his thigh. “I don’t know,” I purred. “I think I wanted to get away from work for a while, and a friend with an invite suggested I should try something like this for a change.” My gaze swept the room, then came to rest on Peter again. “As hesitant as I was, I do have to admit it feels good to let the wild side out every once in a while. Couldn’t let work kill it completely, right?” I laughed and slipped my hand a little higher. Teasing, but safe. “Honestly, I don’t know how you manage, Peter. The galleries you run, the private clients, tracking down all those rarities for your private collections…” I let my words die down to a seductive whisper. “Such a wanted man.”

  Peter shifted under my touch, effectively bringing my hand closer to the swell of his groin. The magic inside me jerked at the arousal it sensed, but I kept my eyes on the vamp and wetted my lips with a slow lick of my tongue. I wasn’t done yet.

  “I visited one of your displays the other week, you know. Wanted to see all that beauty.” Not a lie, since I truly had gone to Ljubljana to check out the exhibit. But as a favor for Nenad to see if his family heirloom was among the many treasures Peter had collected. Some illegally.

  “Did you like what you saw?” the vampire asked, his gaze dipping down to my chest before rising back up again.

  I smiled. “Very.”

  He inched even closer, the arm he had kept on the backrest now wrapping around my shoulders, his fingers skimming lightly across my collarbone. “If you want, I could show you my private collection someday. Trust me, the exhibits are nothing compared to my own gallery.”

  I bit my lip as if I were wavering.

  “The antiques I have… I know a connoisseur such as yourself would appreciate their uniqueness.”

  His mouth brushed against my ear, forcing me to use all my damned will not to shove him away. Because I needed him to be himself. I needed his bragging ass to do what it did best.

  “If all goes well, I should have something most exquisite to add to the collection soon.”

  “Oh?” I pried and leaned against him, the side of my breast brushing against his torso.

  “Mm-hm,” Peter whispered into the curls of my hair. “The auction is tomorrow night. And you know how adamant I am when it comes to getting something I want.”

  I twisted out of his grip, my eyes wide and a playful smile resting on my lips. “How adamant?”

  “Very,” he said with a wolfish grin.

  “And, pray tell me, what does the great Peter Kokel desire?”

  His fingers trailed the line of my bralette, his mouth almost on mine as he whispered, “Fae relic.”

  Chapter 15

  “It has to be Faolan,” Cian said for the hundredth time, picking up exactly where we’d left off when I had stalked into the bathroom to wash off the stinking traces of the party.

  Needless to say, even the scalding water did little to burn off Peter’s lingering touch from my skin. Or Cian’s, for that matter.

  But at least the smell of sex didn’t cling to me any longer, and the comfortable oversized tee, coupled with pajama shorts infused me with a sense of normalcy. Normalcy that dissipated the instant I saw that Cian was till wearing the same cut-out pants, his bare torso on display. I seriously regretted my decision of stepping out of the shower, but I couldn’t exactly cower in there forever, either.

  So I repositioned the towel on my head, sighed, and threw myself down on the chesterfield. My entire body screamed for the
comfort of my bed, every ounce as eager as me to end this mess of a day, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Not with Cian strutting up and down the room.

  We’d already talked about it in length in the car—making the drive back slightly more tolerable—but it seemed Cian wasn’t done yet.

  “What makes you think Faolan would go against the High Lord?” I asked in hopes of getting this discussion over as soon as possible. After all, the auction was tomorrow night, and if I wanted to prepare everything I had to by then, I needed to get up at dawn. No, the prognosis for my near future certainly wasn’t getting any better. And with the lack of sleep, I would only get testier and testier. As if I didn’t have enough of that going around already.

  “Because he’s a self-absorbed fecker.”

  “Reminds me of someone I know,” I muttered, then added loudly, “So Faolan wants to sell off the hallow, pocket the obscene amount of money it would score him, and then what? It isn’t like his brothers would just accept him back… Or is there something I’m missing? I mean, if they worked for centuries to get the hallow, why double cross them now when the only thing still keeping them from absolute reign is your death?”

  “He doesn’t give a fuck about the Fae realm or their court. Not when Gearoid holds the title of High Lord.” Cian strode over and plopped down on the couch, ruffling his purple-black hair with his strong, lean, and all too shapely fingers. The demonic whispers inside me hissed at how attractive the innocent gesture was, utterly furious that they had to stay away. Once again, the light magic agreed.

  And so did I.

  I pushed myself farther towards the edge of the chesterfield, seeking those additional inches of distance. Cian was magnetic. He was a storm, lethal in its destructive beauty. And, gods, I wanted all that power to take me.

  The pitiful amount of distance was all the safety I had left.

  “I’m still not entirely convinced it’s the hallow that’s being auctioned off,” I continued in an attempt to dispel the unnerving memory of his body pressed against mine. “Peter did use the word relic, after all. But if the item is the Stone of your court, then at least that explains the brothers’ absence tonight…”

  A cold smile spread across Cian’s lips. “Gearoid and Dalaigh must be going out of their minds.”

  “You’re awfully cheerful for a male who still isn’t out of the clear,” I snapped, earning myself a chilling look from the Fae in return. “We do still need to get the hallow back.”

  “True. But you already said you had that covered. And if your plan fails, you can always go for a roll in the sack with that vamp of yours. With the right push, I’m positive the asshole would gladly show you his prized possessions. All of them.”

  I tilted my head back and groaned, the towel plummeting to the depths behind the chesterfield. Just when I managed to forget about the sleazeball for a second…

  “Fuck you, Cian,” I hissed, but my voice sounded weak, failing to convince even myself.

  Because he was right. About the first part, at least—though quite possibly the second, too. Ugh.

  My treacherous mouth had offered him my assistance to sneak into the auction before that small part of me that still remained sane had the chance to intervene. Honestly, sometimes it was hard to believe that I worked so fucking hard to escape the demonic power games just to be willingly sucked into one that didn’t even concern me. But the damage was done, and I had a sneaking suspicion I couldn’t extract myself from the mess even if I tried.

  Accepting my bitter fate, I pushed my tired self off the chesterfield and took the long way around the inflatable mattress, staying as far away from Cian as I possibly could.

  “I’m going to bed. Feel free to assault my liquor cabinet if you want to celebrate your twisted victory.”

  Cian said something along the lines that we weren’t done yet, but I was already closing the door behind me, the silence in the room as profound as my annoyance at spending the night by my lonesome self.

  It felt odd to be away from my shop on a Monday morning, but I could at least take some small consolation in knowing that Nenad was filling in for me. He hadn’t been entirely thrilled when I rang him in the morning and threw his ass out of bed, but the werewolf did owe me a favor. And people with witch blood in their veins always came to collect.

  I made my way down to the riverbank from the underground lot I parked in, thoroughly annoyed at just how crowded Ljubljana’s streets were. I always tried to avoid the capital to the best of my abilities, but this was where Lena lived when she wasn’t off stalking her targets, so I really didn’t have much of a choice.

  The throng of people grew thicker as I neared the sunlit cafes, but a familiar tug of energy made it easy to spot my sister lounging at one of the riverside tables. I slid into the chair opposite hers, pushed my Prada sunglasses on top of my head, and took in the Nightwraith sitting before me.

  Months. I hadn’t seen her in months, and being here now, a part of me regretted that I hadn’t rung her up sooner.

  Going by the smile blossoming on her lips, Lena seemed to share the sentiment.

  I didn’t know whether it was the fact that I had dropped by The Night Hag, or if it was the love that seeped into Cian’s voice each time he spoke of his brother, but guilt wrung my insides. He sought vengeance for the family he had lost, while I was pushing my very much living and breathing siblings away just because I was in disagreement with my mother. Lana was older, so my decisions hadn’t affected her as much. But Lena…

  Lena had always been so attached to me as a kid—a loud, fierce shadow that followed me everywhere, always interested in learning what various objects had to say and constantly trying to get me to teach her how to make new wards.

  Which I had.

  And when we were older, Lena had taught me how to defend myself in turn.

  But that was a long time ago, and the memories were tainted by the walls I had put up since.

  “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” I said in way of greeting.

  Lena nodded, her spill of black hair reflecting the golden light of the sun. “Lana told me you came to The Night Hag. I was so pissed that she got to be the one helping you, not me.” Though there was a pinch of truth in her words, the mischief outshone it, and I hid away a smile. “I wanted to be the one with the answers for once.”

  I snickered. “Sure you didn’t throw a curse my way, guiding me into your arms?”

  “Nah. I could have thrown a body your way, but magic was always more in your and Lana’s domain than mine…”

  We fell quiet as the waiter approached to take our order. Lena flirted with him briefly, then returned her attention to me once the human hurried to get our coffees.

  “Did she happen to mention anything else about my visit?” I pried.

  Lena chewed on her bottom lip. “Only that you have some interesting clients lately.”

  “You could say that again.”

  I filled her in as we waited, withholding a few of the more troubling details of my relationship with Cian—though, judging by the twinkle in Lena’s eyes, she could read the subtext just fine. I had barely broached the subject of the auction when the waiter returned.

  The coffee was the typical overpriced bullshit they served in Ljubljana, but I didn’t let my distaste show since we were actually having a good time. Never did get a lot of those with either of my sisters. Somehow, mommy dearest’s looming presence and expectations clung to us wherever we went. Even in this world.

  But there were rare occasions when I caught a glimpse of what our life could have been. And, right now, I wanted to hold on to the illusion for as long as I could.

  “You want to commit a robbery?” Lena laughed, the sound so sweet and pure it made it almost difficult to believe I was talking to the best bounty hunter in the country.

  “Technically, I’ll only be breaking in,” I corrected. “The Fae will do the stealing.”

  “Guilty by association is still guilty,” she croon
ed, then burst into more laughter as I scrunched my nose at her. “Sure, sure, I have what you need. I’m in between jobs right now, so just return the equipment to me when you can.”

  Gods, she was way too excited about all of this. And I was a fool for not expecting it.

  Lena was undisputedly the most demonic of all three of us. She didn’t only accept her nature, but fed it. Used every little skill and advantage it offered. Needless to say, she never could get behind my choice of leading a life away from the darkness. Not when she loved dancing with it so much.

  I shook my head. I really should have known she would be jumping in her seat at the idea of me committing a felony. After all, it did bring me closer to her in a way.

  “So this Fae that you’re helping,” she drawled, the corners of her eyes curling up in a smile. “He must be something, eh?”

  Damn it. And here I thought she would let the matter slide. I snorted.

  “He’s Fae, Lena. As in the-bastards-who-hunt-us Fae.”

  My sister shrugged, the movement sending her wild black hair dancing across her shoulders. “A little danger never hurt nobody. Not when the sex is so good.”

  “Oh, gods, please don’t tell me you hooked up with a Fae.”

  The mischief in her eyes was unreal. “A half Fae. On that French mission I told you about last time. Damn”—she whistled—“that was the best la—”

  “Lena!”

  “What! The lust, not to mention the sheer frustration oozing from you is so thick every demon in the wider area must be able to sense it. If you just gave it a shot—”

  “I have,” I grumbled. “I have, all right?”

  Her entire body went still, save for her eyebrows that created a delicate little frown line down the center of her forehead.