Chapter 22 Elodie
TWENTY-TWO
ELODIE
The licks of heat that consumed my breath subside, leaving raw adrenaline in its wake. It’s about the only thing keeping me on my feet. But as I enter The Hut with Ocean at my side, I’m still undecided on how much of a good idea this actually is.
In the cute black dress my friend convinced me to buy, I slip among the throng of people filling every inch of the space.
It’s set up just like last time, but I can hardly see the bar through the crowd of people, and every inch of the dance floor is filled with sweaty bodies who seemingly had the same idea as we did.
Alcohol.
We beeline for the same high-top tables and I push my hair back off my face as I glance around the room, the music thumping with every pound of the base.
“This is just what we needed,” Ocean insists, beaming as she lets the energy in the room seep into her body. I hum my agreement, but I can’t deny the way my muscles relax ever so slightly when I sway my hips to the beat.
I hate it when she’s right.
I’d hate even more to admit it, so I keep my mouth shut.
“Ocean.” My friend whips around to stare at a guy I’m not familiar with, but the way she coyly smiles at him tells me she is.
His gaze lingers on her lips as he places a tray of shots on the table.
“You made it through,” he states, and she nods as she waves her hand at me.
In that moment, I recall that Institutes Four, Seven, and Twelve didn’t make it.
I feel bad for them, but their loss is currently my gain, and I have to remember that.
I’m used to a dog-eat-dog world, and this is no different.
Just because I seem to suddenly have space to feel emotions doesn’t mean I should.
“Elodie, this is Nathaniel. Nathaniel, Elodie.” I smile politely, and he does the same, but he barely takes his attention off our girl.
“I know Nathaniel from the outside,” she adds, and I nod in understanding while gaping at the fact that I know nothing about her life outside The Vale, except that she committed the cardinal sin, just like me.
“Were you hurt?” he asks, and she tucks a loose blonde curl behind her ear.
“No, but my friend was,” she answers, and he plants his hand on her arm.
I look away, confused about why I’m paying so much attention, but they quickly draw me back in with a round of shots. Uncertainty rattles inside of me. She’s never mentioned this guy. Are we supposed to trust him? She seems to, eagerly taking a drink while handing me one too.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to decline when the door to The Hut opens and three familiar faces enter. I don’t think, I just clink my little glass against theirs and down the sweet liquor without care.
I’m going to need all the help I can get to handle the need inside of me tonight.
“To victories,” Nathaniel calls out, and I plaster a smile on my face, but I can’t bring myself to look away from the three men heading our way.
My mind goes blank as I take in every inch of them.
Rion looks ridiculously good in a fitted white tee and a pair of black jeans, his hair messy, while Kael’s fair hair is swept back off his face, somehow deepening his tan as he wears an emerald green button-up and a pair of pants.
Thorne, however, the Institute Thirteen man of the hour, cuts through the crowd in a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the neckline open just enough to leave you intrigued.
I clench my thighs together, but the excitement brewing inside of me is halted as a set of blood-red nails drape over Kael’s shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. Following the slender arm to the owner, my veins run cold as a familiar wave of red hair greets me.
Willow.
Without tearing my eyes from them, I reach for another shot, ignoring Ocean and Nathaniel as I down it in one, my gaze narrowing on the scene before me.
She rises on her tiptoes to bring her lips to his ear and I want to dart across the room and claw her damn hands off him.
Somehow, I manage to remain rooted to the spot, desperate to hear what she’s saying, and it seems I’m not the only one.
Thorne and Rion don’t move. They stay planted at his side.
It feels like a lifetime passes before she puts a little distance between them, but in reality, it was a handful of seconds at most. I wait with bated breath, ready for him to shove her away and carry on toward me, but to my horror, he leans toward Rion, whispering in his ear for a moment before he takes a backward step.
Willow is right at his side as he retraces his steps toward the door, with her hand at his back, and just before they disappear into the night, she manages to peer over her shoulder at me, a knowing glint in her eyes.
What the hell?
Blindly reaching for another shot, I barely feel the burn as it goes down, taking a piece of me with it as I fight the emotions bubbling inside of me.
I have no say in what he does. We’re not anything.
Well, technically, he’s my guardian, but other than that, we’re nothing. Just how I want it. Just how I made it…
Until now.
Before I can do something completely stupid, Thorne and Rion appear at the table at the same time as Ocean places her hand on my arm.
“Hey, are you okay if I go and dance?” she asks, nodding toward Nathaniel, and I wave her off.
“Have fun,” I breathe, already regretting coming here, but she’s too high on desire to notice as she hurries toward the dance floor, with her palm pressed against his.
The moment she’s gone, I’m surrounded by the hot enemy.
“Petal, you look fucking stunning as always,” Rion breathes, taking his time to rake his eyes over every inch of me. “Doesn’t she, Thorne,” he adds, and I dip my chin, embarrassed as I feel the shadow fae’s eyes on me.
He hums in agreement, leaving me desperate for the floor to open up and swallow me whole. Instead of darting for the door like I should, I latch on to the tray of shots, spying a pink concoction among the empty glasses. Before I can think better of it, I bring it to my lips and swallow it down.
“Kael had something come up, but he made me promise to get you home safely,” Rion states as a bottle of water is placed before me, along with two bottles of beer for the guys.
Thorne tips the guy while I blink between him and my water.
When his gaze turns my way, he doesn’t say a damn word; he just reaches for the bottle and untwists the lid.
Fucker.
Luckily for him, I don’t want to be drunk and incoherent anyway, so I take it from his grasp, bypassing the manners I know I have somewhere, and turn my attention to the ridiculously hot wolf on my left.
“I can make my own way home,” I insist, and he rolls his eyes at me.
“I’m sure you can, Petal, but that doesn’t mean you will. Not after you’ve been avoiding me, and definitely not after you were injured earlier.”
“Injured?” Thorne blurts, his bite cutting through the air, loud enough to be heard by the next table over, and I grimace.
“I’m fine.”
“She’s not fine. She touched a flag that wasn’t ours and felt the wrath of it,” Rion insists, and I give him a pointed look.
“Not before you were electrocuted,” I retort, and he cocks a brow at me.
“Exactly. So we both have to make sure we make it home safely.” He winks as if I’ve just made it easier for him in some way.
Asshole.
“Besides, Kael gave me the keys to his car, and he never does that.” My stomach turns at the reason why, bile burning up my throat, but I tamp it down, refusing to let them see how affected I am by it.
“And before you say it, don’t worry, I’m only having one of these babies.
Got to be safe with special cargo in the vehicle,” he states, and all I can do is gape at him.
He’s insane.
“I’ll drive,” Thorne adds, and I frown, desperate for a distraction. Rion must sense the shift in me because he inches closer.
“Oh, I can see that look in your eyes, Petal. Do you want to place another bet? Spice it up and make it a bit more fun like last time?” he offers, and my gaze instinctively darts to Thorne, recalling the certainty of who I believed was watching me from the shadows when I left with Kael on his bike. A shiver ripples through my body.
“I’m all out of ideas,” I murmur, hoping to put a pin in it, but I should know by now that Rion is not easily swayed once he sets his sights on something.
“Let’s head in there,” he insists, grabbing my hand and tugging me along after him.
I go, willingly apparently, because I’m dumb as hell, but the second we step into the quieter room, I’m thankful for it.
There are only a few people by the door tonight, all of the pool tables are free, and the air isn’t as stuffy.
It seems that everyone is living their best lives on the dance floor or spending the rest of eternity six deep at the bar.
He releases me, but only to set up the pool table, and I busy myself prepping my cue while Thorne leans against the wall, taking a swig of his beer as he stares me down.
“What’s the prize?” Rion asks with a grin, and I blink at him.
“What did you have in mind?” I nip at my bottom lip nervously.
“If I win, I get to eat you out on the pool table,” he offers with a wink, and I gape at him as Thorne remains silent.
“Wow, starting high, huh?” I muse, hating the way my face tingles with excitement as I fail to hide the slight thrill of desire that ripples through me.
“What’s it worth to you, Petal?” he pushes when I don’t shut him down immediately, and I tap my fingertip on my chin, thinking as hard as I can to come up with an answer that isn’t sex related, despite how much I want it to be.
“The Corvette Z06 that is in the garage back at the institute. I want a ride in that.”
“That’s mine,” Thorne interjects, surprising me as Rion waves him off.
“You’ve got yourself a deal,” he declares as Thorne rolls his eyes at his friend, but the agreement is sealed when he breaks the balls and the game begins.
The music is gentle enough to serve as the perfect backdrop as we remain quiet and focused on the game. I can feel Thorne tracking my moves just as much as Rion does, but the moment I miss my final shot, offering the win up on a silver platter to my opponent, the shadow fae is gone.
My face pulses as I stare into Rion’s deep, hazel eyes, feeling him devour me before he even has his hands close.
Nervously, I take a step back, peering toward the door, only to freeze in place when I realize it’s completely empty and the door is closed, yet the music still plays through the speakers in the corner.
“It looks like Thorne didn’t want us to have any spectators, Petal,” he murmurs, aiming a thumb over his shoulder at the door, and I gulp.
“I didn’t think it would matter to him either way,” I reply huskily, and he snickers.
“Stop deflecting and get your sweet ass up on this table.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what you said the last time I saw you,” I retort, eyeing the table as I remain frozen in place.
“Where there’s a surface, there’s an opportunity, it seems. I can make it my mission to fuck you on every table in The Vale, if you like?
” he offers, wagging his eyebrows at me as he saunters closer, one step at a time, until he’s right in front of me.
“You like that idea, don’t you?” he pushes as I shiver, and he already knows the answer, despite the fact that I remain tight-lipped.
“I’m going to need you to remind me exactly what it feels like before I commit to anything,” I breathe, staring in awe as his grin spreads wider.
He offers me his hand, and the moment I place my palm against his, he tugs me closer before backing me up against the pool table. I run my hand over his tee, feeling his taut muscles beneath, and he quickly lifts me in the air just enough to place me on the edge of the table.
My sandals fall to the floor as I shuffle back, giddy with playing a little hard to get before I settle in the center of the felt table.
Leaning back on my elbows, I peer at him, watching as his pupils dilate before he reaches for my ankles and tugs me a few inches closer to him.
My dress rises with the movement, and I’m not quick enough to stop it before his breath flutters over my panties.
I squeak with surprise as he snags at the fabric with his teeth, revealing my core to him as he claims even more of my lingerie. He stuffs the lace in his back pocket at the same time he runs his nose between my slick folds, and I shudder.
This is insane, complete and utter madness, but I can’t stop myself when I’m this close to him.
As if sensing the desire coursing through my veins, he hikes my legs over his shoulders and replaces his nose with his tongue, feasting on me like a man starved as my back arches up off the pool table the second my elbows give out beneath me.
“Rion,” I gasp, desperate to hold onto something, but all I can find is his hair.
Threading my fingers into the short length, I hiss as he rakes his teeth over my clit.
He knows exactly what to do to get me where he wants me, and I’m a sucker for it.
The moment he plunges two fingers inside, I scream, the edge of my orgasm flickering through my body at the same time as the sound of the door opening cuts through the air.
A commotion follows swiftly, but Rion doesn’t move from his place between my thighs; if anything, his movements become more insistent as I glance toward the noise just in time to see the back of Thorne as he shoves someone away.
I gasp, blinking in disbelief as I try to close my legs and stop Rion, but it’s impossible, especially when my fingers curl even tighter in his hair.
My mind and body are at war as my orgasm threatens to reach its peak with the door still open. “Fuck, Rion,” I gasp, the undeniable fast-approaching as my muscles lock and my core spasms around his fingers, my release washing through my limbs as I cry out.
As my muscles soften, I dare to look toward the door, but it’s closed, and no one else is in sight as Rion continues to lap at my pussy. His gaze finds mine, a knowing grin on his face as I pant, riding a high of madness.
Now that we’re alone again, I want more, I want the taste of him on my tongue. Shuffling to the edge of the table, I swing my legs over the side and drop straight to my knees in one swift motion, but the second I’m there, fingers curling into the waistband of his jeans, he shakes his head.
“It was about you, Petal,” he breathes, wrapping his fingers around mine as he removes my touch, and I pout.
“I want to,” I insist, and he grins as he tugs me to my feet, planting a kiss firmly on my lips. I groan, tasting myself on his tongue, but he’s gone again too soon.
“I know, Petal, but when I’m back inside you, it won’t be fueled by alcohol,” he starts, and I shake my head, ready to tell him I’m more than coherent, but his final words pause me. “And it’s going to be forever.”