16. Evanee
Evanee
The full moon was bright, the music quieter.
Distant. Everything else was the same—the shift draped over me, the grass swaying in the breeze.
Even the small pond ahead, where the water danced to the distant music, was identical to what it was in recent dreams. But underneath the calm, melodious exterior, there was an urgency pushing me—I couldn’t pinpoint where, though.
The mountains—
Something waited for me there. I could feel it. I hastened my pace until I came upon a winding path lined with torches. Trepidation crept within me. I’d never left the meadow in these dreams. But I had to see—to know what’s up there.
I pressed on.
Time stretched as I went round and round the range—yet I reached the top in a blink.
A multitude of moonflowers swayed, their bright colors flashing with each flick of their petals.
That’s not what made my breath hitch. It was the male who stood among them.
His dark hair, longer since we started on this path together.
The deep blue eyes and strong jaw. The way he held himself with confidence—
Aiden.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” he called to me. A smile spread across my face as I ran to him, throwing myself in his arms. His eyes lit up in the night as he looked down at me, making me shudder.
A genuine grin spread, his canines showing as he tucked a flower behind my ear, then grabbed my face on either side and leaned in, kissing me hungrily.
I returned that kiss with the same fervor, wrapping my arms around him.
He laid me down on the moonflowers, crushing their silky leaves beneath us.
I clawed at his shirt, pulling it up over his head.
He nudged my legs apart, settling between my thighs, trailing kisses and nips down my neck.
My shift pooled around my hips, his hand grazing the exposed skin, leaving goosebumps in his wake.
I moaned at the sensation of his thickened length pressing against my throbbing core.
He pulled back, staring down, his hair falling across his brow.
“Evanee.” His voice was gritty. Deep. Husky—and not at all Aiden’s.
I stiffened.
His hair was as light as the snow-capped mountains around us, his eyes as blue as the brightest robin’s egg where silver flared through.
Something stirred within me. A longing I couldn’t name. I shouldn’t be here with him, though—a warning pulsed in my blood to run. But I didn’t. His hooded gaze dragged over me before he lowered, brushing his lips against mine.
An overwhelming sense of rightness settled in my chest. The fresh mountain air twisted his scent around me, intoxicating me. His tongue swept across mine, and I moaned again, louder—
I woke, gulping down several breaths, trying to calm my heated blood and remember where I was.
I blinked several times as my eyes adjusted.
The room was dark, all-natural light still blocked off by the snow.
The covers were tangled around my legs, and I had my pillow in a death grip.
One by one, my fingers eased until the pillow fell away, and I sat up, only to meet Aiden’s mysteriously captivating glowing eyes locked on me from the armchair.
Every muscle in my body locked up tight.
I never heard him return. But it seemed he’d been asleep as well.
His hair was uncharacteristically unkempt; the black strands curling and sticking up on one side, the pillow I’d put there for him was scrunched up beside his head, and the blanket was falling off his shoulder. The air thinned as my pulse quickened.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice addled with sleep. “You were moaning. Loudly.”
I wanted to throw up.
“Yep. Just fine. Just a dream. A bad dream.” I swiped at the hair plastered to my face.
“Didn’t sound like a bad dream.” A wicked smile spread as he straightened. “Care to talk about it?”
“Nope! I’m fine. Good night.” I threw myself down, my back to him, and yanked the blanket over my head as if it could shield me from his scrutiny. His muffled chuckle made me cringe, but at least he didn’t push further.
I took little comfort within the dark cocoon I’d wrapped around myself.
Sleep wouldn’t find me with the chagrin plaguing me, or the shame haunting me over what I did in the tub.
My dream wouldn’t have bothered me so much had that ghost-haired stranger not invaded it.
Bastard. My brows drew—why the hell wouldn’t he just leave me alone?
It was only a dream. Then why did it feel like I’d betrayed Aiden?
I couldn’t sleep after that stupid, unsettling dream last night, so I just lay there, thinking about how I'd get away from the three of them. The biggest obstacle was the damn ink on my wrists and ankles. Although the band around my bicep never burned, I doubted it was anything good.
After a couple of hours, I worked out a possible solution—ice.
It was cold enough now that ponds and rivers would begin icing over.
It'd be cold as hell, but I thought maybe if I found the frozen water and stuck my marked skin in it, it would dull the burn. Not a long-term solution, as I couldn’t exactly run around with four limbs in ice buckets.
But it could work until I found a lesser Witch to undo the spell.
Only one way to find out. Now I just needed an opportunity to arise.
“Morning,” Malachai muttered between bites. My hand paused on the chair, brows hitting my hairline. Did he just speak to me, or had I imagined it? I looked to Dimitri, who was at the bar with Marigold. Aiden was nowhere to be seen. He’d been gone when I woke, which hadn’t hurt my feelings.
“Uh, morning,” I mumbled, plopping down across from him. He dragged his flaxen gaze to me.
“I hope your night was pleasant.”
Blood drained from my face. His hearing.
I forgot about his damn hearing in the tub.
His face was impassive, but his eyes swam with something darker.
An audible sigh of relief nearly escaped me when Dimitri shoved into the chair beside me.
Until Aiden walked in and leveled the wolf with a venomous glare that had Dimitri awkwardly shifting over.
“Sorry, boss. Came back in last night because, well, Marigold—and… yeah. So did I miss something?” Dimitri asked as he grabbed a biscuit.
“Not at all,” I said quickly.
“Talking to me again?”
My gaze snapped to him, not bothering to hide my scowl.
Aiden sat next to me, but I kept my focus on my plate as I scooped some of the blueberries from the bowl in the center of the table.
“Anything to report?” Aiden asked, reaching across me to grab a muffin.
He smelled fresh—like citrus and pine. Ugh, of course he bathed and freshened up.
Why wouldn’t he do me a favor and just let himself grow rank to douse the ache that wouldn’t go away deep in my belly?
You’d probably still want him. Wanton, cursed body!
“Nah. Didn’t see or smell anything. Took down a bear,” Dimitri whispered nonchalantly.
“A bear?” I shouted, causing Marigold to glance our way. We were the only patrons, so she had no one else to eavesdrop on.
“Shhh! Yeah, it’s not that big of a deal. I figured it would venture out this way eventually, looking for food now that the snows sticking, and I wanted to ensure these beings wouldn’t have a crisis on their hands later.”
“I thought bears hibernate in the winter?” I said more quietly.
“They do… but with the skur activity, this bear probably didn’t get to eat enough to hibernate or hadn’t found a spot,” he responded. “Or the skurs have it unsettled."
“You’re sure you didn’t sense anything else?” Aiden cut in. Dimitri’s brows furrowed at the interruption, but he nodded
Aiden’s jaw clenched. “We need to head out.”
Dimitri wordlessly got up and went to the bar. He whispered something in Marigold’s ear, then cast a glance at Aiden before he followed her into the kitchen.
I pulled my coat on as I followed Aiden, trailing behind Malachai.
“Are we being followed?” I glanced around, making sure no one could hear, even though no one else was there. The way these males acted was giving me a streak of paranoia.
“Just taking precautions,” he responded with a tight smile before stalking toward the stables.
I stopped at the sight of the fresh blanket of snow covering all of Brixton. Pristine. Untouched. Until Aiden and Malachai traipsed through it, marring its beauty. If I don’t get my damn feelings in line, then Aiden might leave a similar mark on me.
A huff of air shot from my nose at the thought as I squatted and scooped the icy substance into my palm, rubbing it between my fingers.
“Have you not seen snow before?” Dimitri asked as he approached from behind.
“I don’t know,” I said, running my fingers through the cold fluff.
“Pretty, but annoying. I can’t smell or track shit in it,” he responded dryly.
“I thought you told Aiden you didn’t smell anything last night?” I stood, rubbing my hands together.
“I didn’t. Not a lie.” He winked. “This’ll be a nightmare to travel through and an even bigger pain in the ass when it freezes over. Especially with it happening right before the damn cliffs.” Color leeched from my face. The way he said cliffs didn’t sound good at all.
Aiden approached and without prodding, Dimitri made himself scarce,
“Here,” Aiden held out a pair of fur-lined black gloves. “Thought you could use these.” I stood and took them, avoiding eye contact. Unfortunately, my shame and embarrassment were beginning to pile up like pancakes when it came to him. Only, there was no sweetness—just bitterness on my tongue.
“Thank you. You shouldn’t have.”
“Is there a reason you won’t look at me this morning?” He crossed his arms, one brow raised.
“What? No, I just…” Just had a dream about you that ended with another male’s face.
He smirked, stepping close enough that I craned my neck.
“Is this about yesterday?”
My eyes widened. “I mean, I’m not reading into it or—thinking it means anything.” Liar.
He reached a hand out, pulling my chin up. “It meant something to me.”