The fulminating moment illuminated the inside of the library for a mere second and it was enough for me tofinallyglimpse Cade.
With a muscular body carved from the finest chisel, a handsome face housing sky blue eyes, an aristocratic nose, a jawline that could cut, sensuous lips harbouring an arrogant tilt, and dark brown hair that was longer on the top and cropped shorter on the sides, he resembled a young god descendant from the heavens. Divine, in a way mere mortals could not comprehend. Magnificent, in a way only an artist’s gaze could appreciate.
As a lover of arts, I used to wish I’d been blessed with the ability to paint visages so I could capture his splendour on a canvas.
Cade Killian Remington, my dark prince, was perfection personified.
From the moment I first laid eyes on him, he’d taken my breath away. Three years later, my foolish heart still bloomed in the presence of its beloved.
Tonight, he wore all-black like me. Black boots, black jeans, black hoodie, black leather jacket. Also like me, I knew his black ski mask was somewhere on his person.
For a fleeting minute, I forgot about all the hurt he caused. All I could think about was how my emotive yearning, despite my pain, was finally sated after weeks of not seeing him.
I wished I didn’t feel this way, but the heart wanted what it wanted.
“Fine,” I snapped. “Let’s get this over with as fast as we can so I don’t have to see your face again.”
Fat chance of that happening when we attended the same university. For the most part, I managed to successfully avoid him on campus. Unfortunately, it was only a matter of time before we crossed paths once more.
My statement had the desired effect on Cade. His smirk dropped and I internally cheered. Since he chose to stay, I assumed he was willing to put up with all the venom I’d spew his way.
Truth be told, I didn’t always have a fiery temper and Cade wasn’t necessarily a glutton for punishment. But our breakup fundamentally changed us in ways that twisted our dynamics into something ugly and a little fatal.
“Did you decipher the riddle?” he asked in a cavalier manner, but the anger in his undertone apprised that my words hurt him.
“The key resides in the land of fiction,” I repeated like he was daft. “The land of fiction meaning the library, which we are currently standing inside. Obviously, you and I both figured that out, otherwise we would not be here. And, since there were no other clues, the key, which we are looking for, could be just about anywhere at this rate.”
“I could do without your smart mouth, Ella.” His eyes narrowed. “Since you’re running it anyways, tell me, where should we start searching?”
I almost made an inappropriate comment like ‘Didn’t hear you complaining about my mouth when I was screaming your name the last time we fucked,’ but stopped myself from letting that slip. Anything regarding our sex life and past was better left unsaid.
“I’ll work my way through the book aisles. Why don’t youcheck the common area? Maybe there’s a key hidden by the study tables.”
Not waiting for his response, I side-stepped him and walked deeper into the library so I could finally inhale air that wasn’t tainted by his cologne. His scent was my kryptonite. Cedarwood, musk, leather, and something utterly masculine that drove me crazy.
I used to love burying my face in his neck when we lay together just to get a whiff. And when we made love, there was nothing like the taste of his fragrant skin on my tongue.
“You’re insatiable, sweetheart,” he’d murmur while thrusting savagely inside of my pussy, my legs wrapped around his waist, my mouth latched onto his neck. Sucking. Licking. Nibbling. Begging for more, more, more.
The cadence of my breathing increased as I failed to eradicate memories of Cade from my mind. This was not the time or place to be reminiscing. Nor could I afford to get horny around Cade when he’d been the only guy to slake my hearty sexual appetite.
There were days where I felt haunted by a relationship I feared I’d never get over.
Would the pain ever lessen? Would I ever heal? Would I ever get over him?
Don’t think about the past until you’re finished with Initiation Night, Ella. You don’t have the strength to revisit it right now.
In an attempt to distract myself, I veered straight into the book aisles to begin my search for the key, as far away as possible from Cade.
St. Victoria’s library was an uncanny wonder. Once monastic, its style was a mix between gothic and baroque, featuring dark walls and bookshelves, gold ornate molding, deep alcoves, crystal chandeliers, stained glass windows depicting roses and faith, and a restored painting on the high ceiling, displayingrenaissance-inspired art. It was breathtaking, one of the oldest structures in the institute, and there was something holy about it, despite the blasphemous rumours haunting this place.
I began perusing the mystery aisle. I had a hunch the key was wedged between a book—yes, that’s why I sent Cade to the common area because the petty side of me wanted to be the one to find the key—so I used my flashlight to illuminate the weathered spines, while ignoring the way my ex-boyfriend cursed in the background as he overturned tables and chairs in his search.
Minutes later, when I sieved through the romance aisle and made a mental note of the books I wanted to add to my to-be-read list, Cade’s voice intoned behind me, “There’s no key in the common area.”
“Fuck!” Caught off guard, I whirled around and my body collided into him. Cade steadied me with hands on my hips. “You trying to scare me or something?”
He smiled darkly. “Wouldn’t dream of it, Ella.”
