Breath chokes in me, my voice cracking. “I needhelp, Valen.”
“Then take my deal.” He slides off the chair, his hand abandoning my face to wrap around my back, to lower me down onto my back slowly. His weight settles on me and it feels so good. So right. It’s what I searched for in so many nights with heavy blankets to replicate.
Now I go languid except for my hands. They keep their firm grip on his hair, keeping his face close, our breath mingling together, his eyes out of focus.
His lips murmur against mine and I tingle all over. “Come back to me, Tori. Take the deal. I’ll help you get the amulet. I’ll help you, Tori. I swear.” His arm tightens, our bodies fused together. “Whatever it is that you’re keeping from me, we’ll solve it together.”
My breath catches, but no words come out. The ache in my chest, the never-ending pain that worsens every moment I’m without my grimoire, burns anew. I want to rub it, but that would mean letting go of Valen’s hair. He can’t see my face; I’m too raw.
He tries to lift back again and fails. He releases a harsh breath, eyes searching me as best he can. “Talk to me, Tori. Why don’t you want to come back? You could have everything you lost and more!” Frustration is bleeding out more and more. “Come on, Tori. If you won’t run far away, then return and reclaim yourright!” He bares his teeth, his magic crackling with the slip of his emotions. “Let’s fix this. It’s an easy choice!”
I swallow. But it’s not. Because he doesn’t know what I did.
“I… I…” My heart is too heavy, my vision too blurred, my mind too far gone. Everything I left, everything with him, is right there. Right fucking there for me to take. Everything, and I can’t quite remember why I can’t have it. A small sob cracks my voice. “Valen.”
He growls. “Fuck, Tori. Fuck!”
He kisses me and I fall into it wholeheartedly, my hands clawing him to keep him close. It’s all raw passion and hunger and frustration. His. Mine. Both. I bite his lips, nearly ripping his hair out. My legs tangle with his before locking around his hips. He undulates against me, and I gasp against his mouth when his cock presses against my aching sex. We writhe together, his hand gripping my hip. The friction lights me up, my neck arching back with a moan.
It feels good, too good, and he’s still fully clothed. I want to reach down and rip open his pants. The urge to get fucked deep, hard, into his expensive carpet is overwhelming. I cry out, my hips shivering.
But no.Lucas.
I snap my eyes open.Lucas.
I let things get too out of control before, and I refuse to forget him this time.Lucas.
I need to get control.Lucas.
Valen’s hand leaves my hip to grip my corset’s edge, his fingers wedging between it and my sternum, lighting a spark. With a flare and a sizzle of magic, he rips it open, the busks snapping apart, and a zing of pleasure jolts down to my core. I arch into him, head tossing to the side with a gasp. His hands smooth over my bruised ribs, snagging on my chemise, and it’s all so achingly familiar that I feel a near-orgasmic pulse. “Valen!”
He mouths my lace-covered breasts and my mind wipes out, hips desperately grinding against his hard length. I’m going to come, and I’m not sure if that is a good or bad thing. Seems good. I moan, fisting his hair and holding him there. Yes. Good. Good idea. “Yes, Valen. Yes!”
No. I swallow.Lucas.He’s alone, trapped, trusting me. I told him he could trust me.Lucas. Vincentius will kill him.Lucas. Shivers ripple down my body. His smile. His stupid cap.Lucas.
The shoulders above me are wider, the hair my fingers are twisted in longer. The hand stroking me is rough with calluses and I moan so lavishly that it echoes in the room. I drag him up by the hair and kiss him harder, deeper, legs tightening like a vice.
Valen rips back, staring down at me with his blue eyes. Not honey brown. Icy blue. We both breathe heavily, the sound filling the room. He’s on his knees, his hands planted on the carpet on either side of me. The air is much needed.
Did I moan the wrong name? Ice shivers down my arms at the thought, all the blood leaving my face. If I did, then I don’t need to worry about Vincentius. Valen will gut Lucas all on his own.
Valen takes two more gulping breaths. “I need you to take my deal.”
Anxiety claws at my gut and paranoia creeps in. Was this all a game? Am I really that blind?
He takes a slow breath to calm his breathing. “There’s something you don’t know.”
Goosebumps ripple. “What is it?”
“My father is in Havenport and probably at your shop at this point.”
The ground drops out from under me. Words fail me as I free fall, white noise almost stealing Valen’s next words from me. “He went to retrieve you. The Archweaver put a bounty onyour head, in effect as of yesterday. Thirty thousand for your immediate return to him alive.”
“What…” My mind is spinning and I shake, trying to focus. “That’s an insane amount. Why would he do that?”
He knows…Cold horror grips me.
“And your amulet isn’t in my father’s library anymore. It’s in the museum. So please, Tori. Take my deal and come back to the Order.” His breath rushes out of him. “Because I think you’re going to need my help.”
