by J. L. Weil
Chapter Thirteen
A tidal wave hit the shore as Jase’s dragon form slammed into the water. I didn’t think. I just acted, diving off Kieran’s back straight into the dark ocean below.
My name was shouted in three different voices that grew distant as I plunged toward the sea. There were a million reasons why I shouldn’t have jumped, including killing myself, but one reason overruled all the risks.
I had to save Jase.
It was ridiculous if I had taken a moment to really think about it. Me? Save a dragon? Laughable.
Splash! Cool, moon-bathed water rushed over my head. Frantically, I searched the murky sea for a large dragon flipping in circles. How hard could it be to find him? He was huge.
But Jase had shifted out of his scales and into his human skin. My heart quickened when I spotted him sinking farther into the depths of the ocean. I didn’t hesitate, and started kicking as I dove deeper. The shoes on my feet flipped off, and I was thankful the dress I wore was lightweight, giving me the ability to move through the water.
Jase’s body was limp. His head tilted forward. I didn’t want to consider what his lifeless form might mean. The only thought racing through my head was how fast I could get to him. Time seemed to slow, making each second feel like minutes, and I began to fear I wouldn’t be able to save us both.
Finally, my fingers skimmed over his elbow, and I nearly cried. As I slipped my arms under his, I saw a flash of something shiny embedded in the seafloor. I gave it nothing more than a cursory glance, but for a brief second, I felt a magnetic tug, making my fingers twitch.
Swimming toward the surface, I prayed I’d be able to hold my breath long enough to get us there. In water, Jase’s muscular form was a fraction of the weight it would have been on land, but still, it wasn’t an easy feat—not for someone who was only a hundred and thirty pounds soaking wet.
My lungs screamed for air, and no matter how hard I kicked, it seemed as if I wasn’t moving. Panic set in.
I was going to drown.
We both were going to drown.
Some hero I was. What had I been thinking jumping in after him? That was insane, and I’d never done anything like that in my life. I don’t know what had come over me, but seeing Jase get hurt, fall, and be in real danger caused an impulse in me—a batshit crazy one.
Just when I thought I couldn’t move my legs one more time, a pair of strong arms enveloped my waist. I twisted my head to the side, making out Issik’s face through the cloudy water. His frosty eyes glowed an eerie blue. Another set of arms relieved me of Jase’s weight. Kieran. I relaxed into Issik.
Halle-freaking-lujah. We’re not going to die.
I broke through the surface and took a welcomed gulp of air. Water rained over my face as I shoved my hair out of the way. Issik’s firm grip was still secured around my waist as he swam to the edge with Kieran and Jase alongside us.
Zade was waiting on the shore and pulled me out of the sea. “What the hell were you thinking?” he growled.
“Is he okay?” I questioned, panic raising the pitch of my voice.
Zade lifted a brow. “Jase?”
Duh. Who else would I be talking about? Unless someone else had gotten hurt, but no, they were all accounted for. I had made sure.
Zade’s arms tightened around me, and he tugged me against his bare chest. I was shaking. “Relax, Olivia. He’s all right.”
My head shook. I couldn’t. The adrenaline was leaving my body, and I wiggled out of his embrace, needing to see Jase for myself. Zade let me go, and I darted to where Jase was lying in the black sand and dropped down beside him. Is he breathing? Why isn’t he moving? My hands roamed over his torso, feeling for a heartbeat, and my relief nearly jumped out of my chest when I felt a steady pulse under my palm.
Three shadows came to stand around me. “He’s breathing,” I whispered.
“It would take more than a band of griffins to kill a dragon,” Zade retorted, as if it was preposterous to think Jase could have been injured or worse.
Glad to see that they were taking this seriously, but then again, maybe I was blowing it out of proportion and Jase hadn’t been in real danger of dying. They did have a lifetime of experience. I knew nothing about dragons except for what I’d learned the last few weeks.
As I was scowling up at the three descendants towering over me, a hand laced its fingers with mine. My eyes flew to Jase’s. He was awake and smirking at me. “Jase,” I sighed, dropping my head to his shoulder.
“Your fear awoke me,” he murmured.
I wasn’t sure how that made me feel, but next to Jase being conscious, it took a backseat. “Don’t you ever get hurt again,” I ordered, poking a finger into his hard chest. “You scared the shit out of me.”
“She’s angry,” Zade commented, sounding confused by my sudden change in emotions.
Nope. I wasn’t even going to argue about him pointing out the obvious. “I’m sorry. It’s just not every day I see one of my friends get attacked in the air.” And I didn’t want it to become a habit.
Jase sat up, water glistening off his abs in the moonlight. “You’ll get used to it.”
That was the thing. I didn’t want to. My heart couldn’t handle it. Look what happened during a minor incident. How would I react if something major did happen to one of them? I didn’t want to think about it.
“What you did… jumping in after me… that was crazy.”
My heart swelled. “Thanks. I think my craziness has been established, but I couldn’t let you drown.”
His electric violet eyes blazed into mine. “I don’t ever want you to do something like that again. Do you understand?”
Water dripped all over the ground when I stood to my feet. “Last time I ever save your ass,” I muttered, miffed I wasn’t getting a thank you or Geez, Olivia, that was so brave of you.
“Promise me you won’t do anything that reckless again.”
I stared at him, giving him my stern eye. “Fine. I promise. But next time, it will be your life on the line.”
Jase shook his head as if I was the most confounding female he’d ever met, and the other three snickered at me. I didn’t even want to know what they found so funny because I was almost positive it was at my expense.
Zade’s amber eyes flicked my way, running over my body. The fabric of my dress was plastered to my skin like a rubber glove, hugging my every curve. I might as well have been standing in front of them naked. His gaze finally settled on my face. “Let me dry you off.”
I shivered, but it wasn’t from the cold. I didn’t tell him that. As Issik and Kieran gave Jase a hand up, Zade blew a gentle, toasty breath over my skin, evaporating the beads of water. It felt like being under a giant hairdryer.
Combing my fingers through my hair, I turned to see Kieran and Issik assisting Jase inside. He wasn’t making it easy. The proud dragon kept trying to shake them off, but whether or not he wanted to admit it, the pin-sized wounds his body had sustained had taken their toll. He needed rest.
Maybe someone should douse him with some of his own tranquility.
The thought brought a ghost of a smile to my lips.
If there was one thing I’d learned today it was no matter how mesmerizing the Veil appeared from the outside, it was only a cloak to hide the darkness lurking within.
Harlow, Davina, and Kaytlyn were in the kitchen when I sauntered down in the middle of the night looking for a snack. I couldn’t sleep, not after the excitement. All eyes swung to me as I interrupted their little girl powwow. The hushed whispers and muted giggles died.
And who could blame them?
I would have run from the room. I was a hot mess—bloodshot eyes, flushed cheeks, and wild hair. There was probably seaweed still tangled in it. I’d been too tired earlier to do anything but go to my room, but now there was nothing I wanted more than a long bath, a hot bowl of soup, and a marathon of Supernatural… in that order. But I would have to settle for the bath and soup. Sadly, Dean and
Sam Winchester weren’t in my foreseeable future—one of the things I definitely missed about Earth—TV. The Veil struggles were real. As was this mutual loathing between Harlow and me.
“What happened? Did you get into a fight with a barracuda?” the devil herself sneered.
“Something like that,” I muttered, really not in the mood for Harlow’s shit.
“I hope you plan on cleaning up your own mess,” she snapped, leaning her back against the cabinets, her palms on the counter.
The other girls couldn’t meet my eye and glanced away, staring at a bowl of fruit as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. I didn’t blame them though. Staying off Harlow’s radar was the smart thing to do.
I wasn’t a smart girl.
It should be noted that I hadn’t even opened the cooler where perishable food was stored. I hadn’t made a mess yet. With bare feet, I padded across the kitchen and plucked a roll from a basket. “I thought that was why you were here,” I replied sweetly, half anticipating an apple to be chucked at my head. It was a good thing there were no knives nearby because Harlow’s face had turned bright red with rage.
Someone better step between us. A kitchen brawl was about to go down. The door to the kitchen flew open and in walked Issik. His eyes bounced between Harlow and me. “Is there a problem?” He directed the question at me.
Didn’t anyone sleep around here? It had to have been well past midnight. Only a million problems came to mind in response to his inquiry. “No,” I said. “Harlow was just offering to clean up after I eat.”
Issik’s lips almost cracked a smile. “Is that so?” he asked, knowing just as I did that Harlow would never offer such a selfless, kind gesture, but the glint in his eyes told me he approved of my wit.
I smiled. “We’re all just one big happy family.”
Harlow crossed her arms, glaring at me, but she didn’t dare act out in front of Issik, and I stored away that little piece of information for later.
Issik grabbed a chunk off the bread in my hand and popped it into his mouth, hiding the grin that I knew wanted to part his lips. “Glad to see you’re making friends.”
Davina and Kaytlyn choked.
Dragging my smug butt out of the kitchen, I moved through the halls, leaving a trail of breadcrumbs behind me. I couldn’t have cared less about attracting ants.
I wandered my way down the hall into the bathroom with a bounce in my step. Shoving the last bit of carbs into my mouth, I slipped off my clothes and sank into the bubbling square pool in the floor to wash away the faint lingering scent of salt and musk. Steam curled over the aqua waters, and a light glowed at the bottom.
Tucking myself into one of the rounded corners, I laid my head back and let the heat seep into my pores. Blonde tendrils of hair snaked over my shoulders, sticking to my skin. I don’t know how long I stayed like that—at least an hour—but the water never turned cold. It was bliss.
Damn these long corridors and endless stairs. I just wanted to materialize in my room. Was that so much to ask for?
There was no one around to ask for directions—the castle asleep, as I should be—and if I ever found my room, I would fall directly into bed. I had more or less gotten the layout of the castle down in my head, but my brain had checked out, exhaustion finally creeping in. I was about to curl up on the floor and pass out.
The drafty halls were making me regret the decision to slip on a thin robe instead of something warmer. Gathering energy from somewhere deep inside me, I tackled the stairs. While grasping the railing as if it was my lifeline, I swung around the corner and barreled straight into Jase.
Talk about a sense of déjà vu.
His arms dashed out, landing on either side of my waist. For someone who’d been shot by a dozen darts and fallen from the sky, he was extremely steady. I leaned into him, drawing on his strength. “Why aren’t you sleeping?” I asked, genuinely concerned as I looked up into his handsome face.
Lowering his arms, he watched me from beneath thick lashes. “I should be asking you that.”
I sucked on my lower lip and glanced away. “Couldn’t sleep. Too much excitement.”
Those deep violet eyes were on mine; his brows pinched together. “What you did was reckless, but I think you understand how dangerous it was.”
About as hazardous as being alone in a room with Jase, and the last thing I wanted in the middle of the night was a lecture, but it turned out we weren’t alone.
“What are you two doing sneaking around the halls at this hour?” Kieran asked, stealthily coming up behind me.
The sound of his voice made me jump. “For dragons, you guys are pretty fucking quiet,” I mumbled, my hand flying to my chest as my heart thumped wildly.
They rewarded me with twin smirks of wickedness, and neither of them wore a shirt. Why did they have to torture me like this?
“I was hungry,” Kieran replied as if lurking around the castle in the middle of the night was an every evening occurrence. His eyes took in my apparel or lack thereof.
My nipples puckered at his slow perusal, especially when his gaze lingered at the exact spot I was hoping he wouldn’t notice. I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to hide my breasts from making any more of a spectacle, but one glance at the two shifters and I could see a sudden desire churning within their eyes.
Holy smokes.
Jase’s eyes bored into mine, and my cheeks flamed. “I’m starved. You, Kieran?” he tossed the question to him. Jase took a step closer, and the lopsided grin on his lips told me he knew what was going on inside me. It was a look that said food wasn’t on his mind.
Hot Lips came up behind me with green fire in his eyes. “I’ve never been hungrier in my life.”
What had gotten into them? Or better yet, into me? Why was I just standing there instead of telling them to back off? I wanted to blame it on my near-death experience and the surge of adrenaline, but it was mostly just them. All of them.
I glanced down the hall to make sure no one else was wandering around the castle. Jase’s finger came under my chin, bringing my eyes back to his. Behind me, Kieran’s hands landed on the side of my hips. I couldn’t move and could barely breathe, wondering in anticipation what would happen next. Any confusion or uncertainty I had was quickly outweighed by my curiosity.
Kieran leaned forward, his even breath tickling my neck a moment before his lips brushed the sensitive spot. My head automatically tilted to the side, giving him more access. Jase pressed his finger to my lower lip, forcing them to part, and the heat in his eyes had my lower body clenching, tingles cascading inside me.
Those tingles exploded when he took possession of my mouth.
What is happening? Am I really making out with two guys? At the same time? My mind reeled from the smorgasbord of emotions rocking within me. Every hair on my neck stood up, and I worried one of them would stop… or wouldn’t stop.
“Is this okay?” Jase murmured, taking the lead.
“I-I think so.” I reached out and wrapped a single arm around Jase’s neck; the other one laced through Kieran’s fingers at my hip. The gesture wasn’t lost on anyone. I wanted them both to stay just where they were.
“Olivia,” Kieran whispered in my ear, causing me to tremble as his tongue flicked out.
I was sandwiched between them, my body somehow molded perfectly against both of theirs. Jase’s skin smelled like the sea and Kieran’s like the woods. I closed my eyes when their hands roamed over my body, slowly kneading my skin while pleasure seeped into my muscles.
Kieran’s hot lips scraped over my shoulder, brushing aside the material. “You’ve been driving us crazy since you got here.”
It felt like I was in cloud nine. What were they doing to me?
Covering my mouth with his, Jase deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue between my teeth as I moaned. Kieran’s needy hands wandered down my body, sliding into the robe as his fingers splayed across my belly.
Oh my god.
My knees ne
arly buckled and might have if the two of them weren’t pressed against me on either side. I couldn’t stop my body from responding, arching so my breast rubbed Jase’s chest and my butt nuzzled into Kieran.
It was too much. My body yearned for release, but here in the middle of the corridor where anyone could walk out was not how I pictured my first time. Would either of them care that I was a virgin? Should I say something and risk ruining the moment?
Kieran’s fingers skimmed under the slopes of my breasts.
Nope.
Now was definitely not the time to bring it up.
Jase’s lips moved from my mouth to drop kisses along my jawline. My eyes fluttered open, and over his shoulder, I caught sight of the three girls from the kitchen peeking at us through a cracked door. They all had stunned expressions on their faces, mouths agape, except for Harlow. She looked as if she wanted to tear my face off. The corners of my lips curved. I shouldn’t be gloating. It wasn’t my normal nature, but something about Harlow had turned me into a vindictive bitch.
It was clear she was jealous, that she wanted to be in the exact position I was—between two of the dragon descendants—but I wasn’t willing to share, and I would fight her for them all.
Listen to yourself! my mind screamed. They’re not yours. Not technically. Nothing had been discussed. So they kissed me. They desired me. But who was to say it would last? Who was to say they would be okay sharing me? It was hypocritical to expect exclusivity on their end when I wanted all four.
“Wait,” I breathed, putting a hand on Jase’s chest. He nipped at my earlobe before lifting his head to look at me questioningly. The girls closed the door they had been peering through, returning our privacy to us.
“What’s wrong?” Kieran whispered, his lips brushing over my shoulder, making levelheaded thoughts impossible.
Other than I’d never done anything like this before in my life? “I don’t want to just be another notch under your belts.”
“That’s not what this is,” Jase assured me, and I wanted to believe him.
