"Yet another sign that he's completely sane now." I set the paper bags on the small table and begin tidying up some of the messes Baelfire has left in the kitchen.
He slides a dough-filled bread pan into the oven, his voice becoming oddly strained. "Back the fuck off. This kitchen isn't big enough for two."
"It's not big enough foryou," I correct.
He shoves me slightly. I shove him back, intent on cleaning some spilled flour?—
But I suddenly go airborne before slamming into one of the living room walls. It knocks the breath out of me, and my element slips quickly out of my control.
Ice explodes around me like a shield of spikes, which ends up being good and bad when Baelfire impales himself on oneof the massive icicles a second later. The snarl that rips out of him is entirely inhuman. He starts tearing at the ice with his bare hands, his shifted eyes pinned on me with pure, animalistic malice.
Fuck. This isn't Bael.
His dragon is trying to kill me.
Just as bright royal blue fire burns through his skin, and his features begin to transform, Crypt grabs the shifter by the back of his neck and vanishes into Limbo.
Uh oh. Is that incubus going to kill him?
I’ve often said that I’d like Baelfire dead, but quintets are supposed to protect each other. Losing one of us would hurt Maven more than I like to think about.
The door of the bathroom slams open, and my keeper bolts into the living room. Dark magic crackles at her fingertips as she scours the room, probably expecting bounty hunters or another threat.
She's completely naked and dripping water, which is why I stay flat on my ass, staring at her instead of saying anything useful—because my brain is hyper-fixated on every single curve and dip of her toned, wet body.
Dear gods above. How can she be this sexy? Those hips, those dusky pink nipples, the gentle slope of her neck, the flash of danger in her dark gaze…
Even the bit of blood on her neck from an obvious feeding session with the blood fae is a beautiful splash of macabre color on an immaculate canvas.
"Maven," Silas shouts in alarm, following her into the room.
At least he's wearing a towel wrapped around his waist. He blinks at the damage my impact did to the wall.
"Godsdamn it all, what happened?"
Seeing Maven move too close to one of the wickedly sharp icicles, I immediately melt the ice around me and get to my feet,ignoring the ache in my bones. Nothing feels broken, but my ego isn't the only thing that will be bruised later.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to inter?—"
Her hands frame my face as she checks it for injury before moving on to survey the rest of me. When she sees I’m unharmed, she exhales slightly and meets my eye.
I can't say I'm doing the same for her. Her naked body is a sensual weapon, and I also can't stop staring at the House of Arcana emblem on her scarred chest.
I need my mark on her, too. So fucking badly.
"Where are the others?" she asks.
I replay the last couple of minutes in my head. "Baelfire's dragon just took over while he was still in human form. He lost control, and…Crypt took him away through Limbo. Outside, I guess."
She turns to the front door.
"You're not going out intothatnaked," I snap at the same time Silas grasps her hand to keep her from leaving.
I can tell our reactions have irritated her. Luckily, before she can put us in our place, Crypt reappears, brushing snow out of his messy dark hair and off of the distressed leather jacket he picked up at some point.
"Not to worry, darling. Your pet lizard just needed to go hunting. He'll be perfectly well soon enough."
"Except you took him into Limbo."
