“I’m only going to say this once,” Obsidian began, his voice deep, authoritative. “I understand you’re angry, but in this house, you’ll show respect to everyone, but most importantly, your sister.”
Oliver glared back at him, but thankfully, he kept his mouth shut.
“We’ll be more than happy to fill you in as soon as we’ve all settled in,” Obsidian continued. “It’s been a rough couple of days, and we all need sleep. I want everyone to meet for dinner at nightfall.”
“Then I think I’ll retire,” Acadia said softly, her gaze pinned on Obsidian. “Unless you need me?”
Penelope felt Obsidian tense behind her, and suddenly her stomach churned violently. Penelope knew it was the Fae’s reference to him feeding, but it felt ridiculously intimate to her.
“I think I’ll retire, too,” she said quickly, pulling away from Obsidian and heading for the elevator.
“Penelope, wait,” Acadia called out.
“You do your thing,” she said, her back to the others. “I’ll do mine.”
Before someone could convince her to stay, Penelope darted for the elevator, keeping her eyes down as the door closed. On the third floor, she stepped out into the living room with its black leather sofas and monstrous television. She hurried down the hall to Obsidian’s bedroom, closed herself in, then sauntered into the bathroom.
This was, by far, her favorite room of all she’d seen so far. She’d only spent a few minutes in here, but as far as she was concerned, she could live in this enormous space. From the drop-in tub in the center of the room that looked more like a pool than a bathtub, to the spacious shower that stood behind it, the glass tiles on the wall sparkling in the blue lights in the ceiling, it was about as perfect as she could’ve even imagined it to be. A soothing space, meant for luxury and relaxation.
Yet it didn’t have any magical powers, because the longer she lingered, the more her anxiety grew.
Thinking about Obsidian feeding from the Fae gave her heartburn. Which was odd considering she knew so little about his kind.
“His kind,” she muttered. “An angel. Awarriorangel, at that.”
It made absolutely no sense, and at the same time, it all seemed to fit together.
Though she considered taking a shower, she figured sleep was the best way to deal with the overload of emotions right now. Not sure where her suitcase was, Penelope ventured into the closet, called out for the lights to come on. They lit up the space, highlighting an entire wall dedicated to Obsidian’s clothing, the other side completely empty except for the few items she’d packed. Evidently one of theheurosphad unpacked for her.
Figuring it was too cold to wear the tank top and shorts she’d brought to sleep in, Penelope stole one of Obsidian’s button-down shirts. It took some doing to get it situated, but she finally managed to get the sleeves rolled up enough so that she could use her hands. When she returned to the bedroom, Penelope came up short. Obsidian stood, hands in his pockets, looking tormented, his sunglasses tossed aside, silver eyes churning.
“We need to talk,” he said gruffly.
“After we sleep.”
She started for the bed, but he reached for her. “Now, Penelope.”
While she was taken aback by his high-handed behavior, she conceded. “Fine.”
“In the other room. Neutral ground.”
Penelope did not like the sound of that, but she allowed him to lead her out of his room, down the hall, and into the open living room. Flames flickered in the fireplace, warming the space as he directed her to the sofa.
Obsidian took a seat, pulling her down with him so that she was not quite on top of him but close. She leaned into his warmth, held on to his arm when he draped it over her shoulder and across her chest. Despite her anxiety, she still relished the feel of him.
“I know it bothers you that I have to feed from Acadia,” he said softly, his torment reflected in the tone.
She stared into the orange flames, fighting the strange twinge in her gut. “Tell me this … how often do you have to feed?”
“To maintain my strength, daily, but I can wait as long as three days. It’s not ideal, but it’s sometimes necessary.”
“But you can’t feed from humans? Or other angels?”
“Angels, no. Humans … I could, but it’s the equivalent of having a bowl of rice when you need protein. We must feed from a Fae or ouramsouelot.”
“Asmia and Acadia?”
“They’re the only ones here right now. There are fourteen in total, but we had to split up. Once my brothers are back, the Fae will return as well. There are a couple of males among them, so I could use one of them if necessary.”
