My brain cells snapped into sharp focus. I wasn’t a dog, or someone’s science experiment. Xan had purposely emotionally overloaded me, and instead of teleporting somewhere random, I’d come to my friends.
“Quinn can decide where she wants to be,” Rowan said, voice too soft to be safe.
He stepped around the table to my empty side, effectively boxing me in between him and Cayden. Despite my climax, my core still tingled. I liked being between my best friend and Rowan. A lot. Almost as much as being between Ezra and Xan, when they were simply Ezra and Xan and not the Architect and his first in command. Right now, they were definitely the latter.
“Cayden,” I said evenly. “I need you to pour cold water on me right now.”
My best friend, bless his heart, didn’t question it. I pulled off Rowan’s cloak just as a set of glowing runes spilled freezing liquid onto my head. Cold dripped down my body.
The doorknob on the map room tried to turn, but Cayden’s runes stopped it. Not a second later, the old wooden door exploded. Splinters of wood and metal binding attempted to rain down on us, but Rowan’s simple shield kept them at bay. Xan stepped into the room with one hand raised and two bracelets glowing with his baby-blue power.
“What is going on here?” he roared.
Dressed only in my now wet, silky bra and training pants, I stepped out between Rowan and Cayden.
“You did that on purpose,” I snarled. “I could have teleported anywhere.”
“And I would have found you.” Xan’s gaze calmly assessed the situation.
I didn’t miss the extra few heartbeats he spent scanning Rowan. Xan felt my orgasm. Did he assume Rowan gave it to me? Or was he pulling a memory out of Rowan’s mind? An uneasy shiver ran down my back. No. He said he didn’t do any of that without permission.
“If you want to see it, take it, sir,” Rowan stated as if reading my mind. “You have my permission.”
Xan shook himself and looked away from Rowan to me. “It’s not your permission I need or want, Rowan.” His gaze burned into me, but I didn’t understand what he wanted. After a moment, he ran a hand over his face and through his hair. “Did you teleport here on purpose?” he asked, focusing on the results of his actions, not his slow crawl up my body until my sex drive literally overloaded my brain.
Heat kindled in my core at the memory.
“More water,” I demanded.
This time, it wasn’t Cayden’s runes, it was Rowan’s raw elemental power that drenched me.
My brain finally returned. Lust haze was real, fuck me. I’d spent a lot of my life thinking it was something made up in romance novels and movies. But I was very, very wrong. For the last three days, I’d followed the Architect around like his puppy. Given he’d been just as excited, but still. I hadn’t even tried to reach out to my friends.
I’d gone from fiercely fighting for my independence to almost moving in with the very man I’d been fighting against. Everything was happening too fast.
I pulled my shoulders back, which only made my nipples aim like lasers at Xan. But he was gay. He could deal. “I’m staying with my friends.”
Xan’s lips flattened into a line. “That will interfere with your training and youreducation.”
My clit pulsed at the word “education.” He knew what being between him and Ezra did to me. And yeah, I wanted that heat, but not from men with motives I couldn’t trust. No matter how much I started to trust Xan, he was still the Architect.
“I can train and still stay in my dorm.” I gestured to Ezra. “And maybe a balanced education would help all of us.Including you two.”
There was no way Xan’s words in the Alun were true. He’d only kissed me to force a teleport. I couldn’t think it was anything else. Xan and Ezra were perfect together.
“Cloak, please, Rowan,” I said softly.
Rowan covered me once more, and I let my magic seep into my body, warming me before the cooling water could weaken my immune system, if that was even a thing in this magical dystopian future.
If I woke up from surgery, I was writing a fucking novel.
Xan took a step back and put his hands up. “Of course, Quinn. I will get you a new schedule that includes tutoring with me, training with Rowan, and your lectures.” He took a deep breath.
“And my work-studies, I don’t want to be in your debt,” I said before he could keep talking.
Xan pursed his lips. “Consider your training payment enough for whatever you need. I never should have made you work in the first place. You’re a guest, both in this time and in my castle.” He patted his heart. “I should’ve asked you what you wanted instead of diving headfirst into your training. I obviously overstepped my bounds.”
Guilt flooded my stomach. I mean, no, he hadn’t asked me outright, but I hadn’t asked for anything different than what Xan offered. He didn’t need to take all the blame for this.
