“Stay away from Kane.” His sudden proximity behind me sends shivers down my spine as I spin to face him, leaning back against the table. He plants his hands on either side of me, lowering down so that we are nearly at eye-level. “Do you hear me?”
“Why?” When he doesn’t respond, I shake my head and lift my chin. “I will see whoever I want.”
“You would do well to remember that you know nothing of this island and its politics. You knownothingof who is friend and who is foe,” he murmurs, his gaze antagonizing me as I grip the edge of the table harshly. Unbidden thoughts of us in a similar position on the ship flash in my mind, except he was completely naked then.
“And which are you, Kai? Friend or foe?” My nipples peak under my shirt at our proximity, at the heat radiating off his body and onto mine.
Kai’s nostrils flare, and he leans in even closer until our noses are nearly touching. “To you? Neither. And stop looking at me like that.”
I can’t help but grin deviously as I tilt my head. “How am I looking at you?”
“Like you want me to fuck you,” he says as though it’s a reprimand. His head moves to the side of mine, his breath tickling my ear. “Like you know that I’m the only one who could do it properly.”
It’s a battle to keep my breathing even as I stay perfectly still. I don’t want that—can’twant that.
“But I don’t touch taken females.”
I jerk my head in surprise.
Kai backs up a few steps, plastering his well-worn mask of indifference on. “Let Tua know if you need anything else. I will see you tomorrow morning to visit another round of families.” His long legs bring him to the door quickly and out of the room before I even have a chance to reply.
“Taken?” I mumble to myself, drawing on any memory that might give Kai the impression that I am with someone.
I go over every moment since the shifter king came to the island to pick me up, and other than my rendezvous with Kane, there’s nothing that comes to mind. Until I remember what Kai said when we were leaving the beach of the Mage Kingdom.You’ll see your boyfriend soon enough.
“Fucking Daje,” I groan.Of course.Even an ocean away, there is no escaping what awaits me the moment I return to the Mage Kingdom.
Huffing out a breath, I carefully pull my magnifier out to set on the table, as well as the bottle containing the leaves from mylast experiment. My journal with notes taken from yesterday lies next to it, the spelled pen holding the page open.
“Did you know that talking to yourself is a sign of insanity?”
My attention snaps to the door where a female stands under the doorframe, her hands planted on either side as she leans in until her arms are straining. I recognize her warm brown hair and the same golden tan skin that Kai has.
“You’re Jahlee.”
She smiles wide, her full lips parting to reveal perfectly white teeth. “To you, yes.”
Snorting, I walk to the side of the room where a few chairs are stacked and take one back to the table. “You sound just like your brother.”
She straightens from the doorframe, practicallywaltzinginto the room as she drags her fingertips over the canvas sheet covering part of the mirror, tugging it off completely. “I don’t get that a lot. I wish I did. He’s actually why I’m here. I saw him storming out looking extremelyflustered,and I had to see why.”
I narrow my eyes as I take her in. She’s shorter than I am but built similarly. There’s a litheness about her that seems to be something all females from this island have in common. The top half of her hair is tied up into two tiny buns while the lower half drapes over her shoulders in subtle waves.
Mint green gauzy fabric wraps around her chest in a crisscross pattern, tying at the back of her neck. A matching long skirt with a slit that stops mid-thigh glows against her skin, and black hard-soled slippers complete her look. She has a regalness about her, unlike the roughness her brother so often exudes. She also doesn’t have a tattoo of any kind, at least not one I can see currently.
“You get under my brother’s skin,” she says, facing me as she sits atop the table and examines her nails.
“If I do such a thing, it’s only because he makes itso easyto.” She laughs wildly at that, the sound jarring and loud.
Giving her an incredulous look, I carefully uncork the bottle holding the leaves that were brought back to life and take one out, setting it on a glass slide for the magnifier. Jahlee hops off the table and walks with her arms swinging at her sides until she is standing right next to me.
“He is rather prickly at times. I try to lighten the mood whenever we are together, but he seems reluctant to experiencejoyof any kind.” She reaches out to touch the jar of leaves, but my hand snaps out and catches her wrist.
“Please don’t touch that. It’s important to me, and I can’t let anything happen to it.” I release her from my hold, expecting a curse or for her to threaten going to her brother, but instead, she smiles somehow even wider, the sight completely unsettling.
“You have fast reflexes for someone who doesn’t have shifter in her.”
I still, my hands falling flat on the tabletop.
