“Not when I’d left. She’d refused to tell him no matter what he did to her. It was one of the reasons I ran. To keep her and mysister safe.” For a moment, fear ghosted through my heart. I’d promised myself I would always stay far away from my family. My presence in Faery put my mother and sister at risk, especially if I approached them. But part of me, the little boy who missed them, wanted to see if they were safe and well. I didn’t think my father would kill them, but like with Shannon, there were many ways to destroy a person that were far more cruel than death.
Shannon nodded. “I’d have done the same thing…wait!”
My grin turned feral when Shannon yanked her hand from mine and shoved her hands onto her hips, glaring at me. “Stoney-boy, you’re trying to distract me. What’s your damned name? Yourrealone!”
“Stone,” I repeated, backing her up against the nearest tree. The trunk was huge and more than big enough for me to place my hands on either side of her head and box her in. Her scent filled my nose, making it hard to control my urge to flatten my body to hers.
Her eyes flashed as she lifted her chin, peering up at me. Her hands landed flat on my chest but didn’t push me away. Instead, her fingers curled into the material of my t-shirt, holding me closer, belying the scowl on her face. “Now, you’re just being a dick. You know mine, so why won’t you trust me with yours?”
I leaned in, inhaling the scent of her hair and basking in the warmth of her skin. Suppressing a groan, I ghosted my lips over the shell of her ear, revelling in the tremble it sent through her body. My cock twitched, my mouth watering at the sweet scent of her desire. I forced myself to speak, my voice gravelly. “You must be a good girl to get that information from me, my fierce Huntress.”
Her pupils dilated, and I almost gave in to my urge to grind up against her. It wasn’t surprising that she had a bit of a praise kink, considering how starved of it she’d been all her life. It was something I’d absolutely explore—but not yet. Still, fighting theheat simmering between us was too hard. With a growl, I leaned in and took her mouth in a deep kiss, swallowing her taste as our tongues duelled. Gods, if I didn’t stop, I was going to lose all sense of control, and taking her up against this tree was not what I wanted for our first time together. Dragging up my willpower, I caught her bottom lip between my teeth, trapping it as I pulled away, leaving us both panting.
“One day, I’ll tell you my birth name. But myrealname is still Stone. It always has been, and I don’t intend to change it, especially since I like hearing you call me Stoney-boy.”
I grinned at her dazed expression, but before she could recover, I grabbed her hand and pulled her back onto our path, leading the way to our destination.
Chapter 15
Shannon
I was still trying to get my head around Stone having another name, asecretname, when he told me to duck and led me through a curtain of vines covered in the prettiest white and purple flowers I’d ever seen. Inside the protection of the Fae flora, the air was musty, and dampness tickled my nose. The light was muted enough that, even when I squinted, I couldn’t see and stumbled over exposed roots.
“Okay?”
“Fine.” I wouldn’t admit it, but I was tired. Not only had I just had an emotional meltdown and bared my soul to the male by my side, but I hadn’t slept, and the effects of my alcohol withdrawal hadn’t completely settled despite my shifter healing and the Fae medications. I’d also run from the house before eating. I sighed, remembering my hasty exit. It had been so hard listening to Finchley talk to Stone about Gwen.
My face heated even though the cool, damp air caressed my skin. My behaviour had been childish and rude. Stone’s past was real, his relationship with Gwen was real, and reacting asI did was downright embarrassing. My emotions were clearly not as stable as they could be, and I was still working through my feelings for Stone. They’d become so deep so quickly, it was terrifying. Or maybe they had been deep for a while, and allowing myself to admit them was the frightening part.
A weight had lifted from my shoulders when I talked to Stone about my Dad. It had been cathartic to finally tell someone what he’d been doing to me—for years. It hadn’t erased my self-disgust for allowing it, but it was a relief that he understood why I sometimes behaved the way I did. Changing my behaviour was something I wanted to work on, but I‘d spent a lifetime pushing people away and convincing myself I didn’t need anyone. I was petrified of both giving Stone any more power to hurt me and the soul-deep yearning in my heart to believe we could have a future together.
Stone didn’t slow until we exited through another curtain of vines and stepped into the sunshine. I sighed with relief as the dampness evaporated from my skin almost immediately, and warmth seeped into my bones. Despite that lovely feeling, my limbs shook, and it was all I could do to not sink onto the lush green grass and beg to rest.
“Come on, Butterfly, nearly there.”
Fatigue dogged me, but I trailed after Stone. Mother Wolf, I was so tired. It took all my concentration to watch where I stepped so I didn’t slip. Suddenly, Stone stopped walking, and I barrelled into his back with an “oomph!”
He grinned over his shoulder at me. “We’re here.”
I peered around his ridiculously broad shoulders, my gasp immediate and genuine. Before us was a glade that was so bewitching it stole my breath. A small cliff face made a crescent of protection, thick vines and bushes creating an impenetrable barrier around the edge while behind us, the trees covered in the purple and white flowering vines hid the entrance.
Slowly, I turned on the spot, my mouth gaping open. Water cascaded over the edge of high cliffs from streams that wound through the fauna above. A gentle mist rose from the sparkling pool, where those crystal waters fell. Droplets of water that sparkled like jewels caught in the air before settling on our skin.
“Wow,” I whispered, looking down into the deep pool. Strangely, the pool surface had no ripples. It was crystal clear and beautiful, revealing a rock bottom that sloped into a dark, watery chasm. Yet, the darkness only made the underwater world, where sunlight penetrated, more beautiful. A forest of rainbow-coloured fronds dotted with bright flowers gently swayed with the current while fish and other pretty creatures I’d never seen before darted through the water, some staring up at us with bold curiosity, others swimming away to hide in the safety of the underwater world.
“Are they good Faeries, or bad?” I whispered from where I’d edged onto the bank and stared down into the water.
Stone walked up behind me, and my breath caught, my body melting against him when he slipped his big hands onto my waist. My heart fluttered at the intimate contact and the heat searing my skin from his touch. Yet, a different kind of warmth radiated through my chest, along with a strange, aching need for more. A lump lodged in my throat. How many times had I wanted to do just this, to feel his arms around me and be close enough to absorb his strength and comfort as he held me close but had been too terrified of what it might mean? I almost didn’t want to breathe in case he took his touch away.
“They aren’t good or bad. Most Fae aren’t.” His teeth grazed the back of my neck, and he huffed a sexy chuckle at my shuddered response. “Though some are more bad than good. Remember, we aren’t human. Our morals, just like the shifters, are very different.”
The whimper that escaped me was involuntary as he nipped me again before laving the skin, sending a jolt of pain followed by a wave of pleasure that went right to my already aching centre.
“Theyare harmless enough as long as you don’t treat their home with anything less than the utmost respect.”
His fingers tightened on my curves before he slid his arms around me, one big hand landing on my lower stomach, one on my upper chest. Then he urged me back until my head rested against his shoulder, and my backside was nestled against his hips. It registered that his arms were bare, and I could feel the hardness of his pecs against the back of my neck, but it was his hard arousal against the upper curve of my arse that had my breath catching and my face heating with lust. Heat from his naked chest scorched me through my thin top, making the situation between my legs worse. Not only did I ache like only he could make me, but I could smell my own arousal just from his touch. Mother Wolf, I was so fucked if this is how I reacted just being near him. My blood heated, that intimate ache spiralling higher until my lower belly clenched with desire.
“Respect is important. Wouldn’t you say, Butterfly? Especially when you’re in someone else’s home.” His voice lowered and was as gravelly as I’d ever heard it. Was he as affected by touching me as I was by being touched? It somehow made me feel better; the knowledge that I had affected him, too.
