Chapter 20
Jared
Today is the day. I’m finally ready to take off the dampening amulet.
Nerves made for a fitful night of sleep, leaving my tired eyes feeling like sandpaper this morning.
Still, I refuse to back out. I need to know whether I really can control my powers.
Opening night of the Halloween festival is less than a week away—it’s now or never.
Hux is confident that, thanks to the generous size of my back garden, even if I have another power surge I’ll be far enough from the house not to cause any damage. Thankfully that means we’re doing this experiment away from the town’s prying eyes, no privacy wards necessary.
“Remember, once the amulet comes off, your power may try to force you to shift into your demon form again. If that happens, just go with it. The first shift can be uncomfortable, but fighting the process will only make it worse, understand?”
I shoot a nervous look at Selene where she’s perched a few feet away on the low wall separating the back patio from the lawn, then nod at Hux. “Got it.”
At first the news that I could end up sprouting horns and a bloody tail rattled me but, after seeing Huxley’s seamless shift, I’m less afraid—the guy’s demon form is badass.
“Ready?” Hux asks, hands hovering millimetres above the clasp of my necklace.
I take a deep breath and focus on the muted power inside me, imagining a still lake once again. “Do it.”
The weight of the amulet falls away. Magic swells within me, the lake in my mind’s eye once again going deeper, deeper. But unlike last time, I’m able to set the pace. I imagine myself sinking below the surface of the water, drifting towards the darkness at the bottom of the lake, into the unknown.
Minutes or hours pass by—I can’t tell—but eventually I feel my feet hit the lakebed. I look up, no longer able to see the sunlight dancing on the surface of the water. I’ve sunk further than I thought.
The dark water swirls around me, swallowing me whole. A scream bubbles up in my throat, but I bite it back, remembering what Hux said. I have to let the change happen.
Suddenly I’m back in the garden, blinking as my eyes get used to the harsh sunlight. The world looks different. Like I’ve been walking around with the wrong prescription in my glasses all this time and it’s finally fixed.
The pull I felt in my chest before has magnified tenfold, and I stagger forward, feeling like I’ll be torn apart if I don’t follow it. My gaze lands on Selene, and a low growl rumbles in the back of my throat.
“Mate.”
“Oh, shit.” My head swivels to look at the demon who dares to come near my mate. This weakling thinks he can take her from me?
I’ll kill him.
Power builds inside me as I prepare to destroy the demon who thinks he can steal my mate. Something pricks at the edge of my mind, telling me this isn’t right, but I shake it off.
He brought this on himself.
SELENE
“Mate.” Jared’s voice is low, guttural. He’s grown several inches, and his fair golden skin has turned a deep, dark green.
Black claws tip each of his fingers, and a set of onyx horns has sprouted from his hairline, their pointed tips angled almost directly behind him.
Oh boy. I’m in trouble. Waiting to tell Jared we’re mates suddenly seems like a fucking idiotic idea.
I was going to tell him before he took off the amulet, but between the incident with the Devil’s Brew and his panic attack yesterday morning there hasn’t been a good time.
Now the amulet’s off, and Jared knows the truth. On its own, recognising the mate bond for the first time would be enough to ramp up his demonic instincts but, coupled with his first shift, Jared’s rational mind has been completely overrun.
“Oh, shit,” Huxley curses.
Like something out of a human horror film, Jared slowly turns his head to look at Hux and snarls.
There’s no spark of recognition in his eyes, only burning rage.
Raw power crackles in the air surrounding us, lifting the dark strands of my hair from my shoulders, and I realise what he’s planning to do.
Leaping between the two demons, I call out, “Jared, stop!”
My outstretched palms smack into his chest just as he lunges towards Huxley.
His shifted form is bigger, broader, and the burgundy cotton of his t-shirt strains to accommodate him.
He’s running hotter than a furnace too—not an uncommon side effect of a demon’s first shift according to Huxley but, if Jared doesn’t calm down and shift back soon, he’ll risk overwhelming his system.
“Mate.” Large hands grip my upper arms. I can feel the light prick of his claws through my dark wool coat.
“Yes, I’m yours,” I reassure him.
A twig snaps. Jared glares over my head, and I feel his rumbling growl. Dammit, Huxley. I almost had him.
“Mine.”
Before I know it, my feet leave the floor.
A yelp of surprise escapes me as Jared scoops me into his arms, and I instinctively wrap my legs around him to keep myself from falling.
A sensible person would be afraid, and if this were anyone other than Jared, I would be.
But this is my fated mate. The man I love.
Sure, the Jared I know is buried beneath his overpowering demon instincts right now, but he’s still in there. He won’t hurt me.
Cupping his cheeks, I do my best to get Jared’s attention off Huxley and back on me before he murders his friend. “Hey, Jared. Look at me. Eyes on me.”
Hazel eyes that glow a little greener than usual meet mine.
“That’s it.” I continue to stroke his face and hair, careful to avoid the dagger-sharp horns he’s currently rocking amidst his golden locks. “Keep looking at me. I’m your mate. You don’t need to look anywhere else.”
A taloned hand tangles in my hair, startling a gasp from me as Jared pulls my mouth down to meet his.
Oh, fuck. Should have seen that coming. Human Jared isn’t home right now, and all demon Jared’s interested in is claiming his mate. Whoops.
His forked tongue tangles with mine and it’s…
different. Still hot though. My back hits a nearby tree-trunk and suddenly I’m glad I have my coat to protect me from the rough bark.
My legs are still wound tightly around Jared’s waist, and he uses his free hand to push my plum-purple skirt even further up my thighs.
A tearing sound fills the air, the tights I’m wearing falling victim to Jared’s sharp claws. Worth it.
A throat clears. “Right. Well, it seems like you’re all good here, so I’ll see myself out,” Huxley says, the words laden with amusement.
Jared turns his head to growl at the lust demon—after I get Jared through this, I need to talk to Huxley about his apparent death wish—but I reach up to stroke the base of one of his horns causing my mate to make a very different sound.
Looks like what I heard about horns being an erogenous zone for demons was true. Noted.
Intrigued by the texture, I run my fingers over the obsidian-black horn again. Jared moans long and low. Oh, we are so going to play around with these in the future. Shit. Not the time.
“Jared. Jared, stop, you need to shift back,” I say between open-mouthed kisses. He reaches for the button on his jeans, and I capture his wrist. “No. You need to change back.”
He growls, then goes back to kissing along my exposed collarbone.
“We can’t. You’ll hurt me like this.”
Jared freezes.
“You don’t want to hurt me, right?”
He pulls back a fraction to look at me, the green glow of his irises dimming infinitesimally. This is how I get through to him. “I need you to shift back so you don’t hurt me. Do you understand?” A nod. “I know it’s hard—just focus on my voice. Let me help you come back.”
Slowly, Jared releases his grip on my hips, and I slide down the front of his body until my chunky black boots hit the ground. I’m still backed against a tree within the cage of his arms, but this is progress.
Fascinated, I watch as his body returns to its usual size, his claws retract, and the green glow in his eyes fades completely until I’m looking into the familiar hazel eyes I often get lost in.
He’s panting with the effort, and the horns are still present—he’s only managed a partial shift—but I can tell the Jared I know and love is back in the driver’s seat.
“There you are.” Smiling, I reach out to take his hand, but he jerks away from my touch like it burned him. “What’s wrong?”
“God, Selene, I’m so sorry,” he croaks, not meeting my eyes.
“It’s fine. Huxley warned us your first shift might get a little… intense.”
He rears back like I’ve slapped him. “How can you say that? It’s not fucking fine, Selene. None of this is OK.”
I look down, half expecting to see a gaping wound in my chest where my heart’s been ripped out. I expected him to be upset I didn’t tell him the truth about us being mates, but I never imagined he’d go so far as to reject our bond.
“Jared, don’t do this.” Shaking my head, I reach for him. “I’m sorry, OK? I should have—”
“Why are you sorry? I hurt you, Selene. That’s unforgivable,” his voice cracks.
Wait. He’s not rejecting me? Hope blooms in my chest.
“No, I’m fine, Jared. You didn’t hurt me.”
“I threw you against a fucking tree!”
“Yeah, I know.” I smirk. “Feel free to do that again any time you want.”
“Are you seriously making jokes right now?”
Yikes, now he looks pissed off. Still, I prefer that to the broken expression he was wearing a second ago. This I can work with.
“Who’s joking? It was hot.” I shrug, winding him up further.
“That’s not the point, I—” He cuts himself off. “No. I know what you’re doing. That’s not going to work.”
I step towards him, wearing my best innocent look. “What is it you think I’m doing? I’m just being honest.”
“That right there.” He points at me. “Stop it. This is serious.”
“It is,” I agree, edging closer. “You’re trying to be all honourable and fall on your sword or some shit because you think you’ve done something wrong. Well, I’m not having it. You didn’t hurt me, and I’m not letting you throw away this relationship in some misguided attempt to be a gentleman.”
“But I—”
“No, Jared.” I step right into his personal space. “You’re my mate. I’m not letting you run away just because you’re scared.”
“That’s not what I’m doing,” he argues.
“Isn’t it? You just experienced your first shift, and I’m betting you’re only now starting to understand what Huxley and I meant when we said you’d be an incredibly powerful demon—that’s enough to scare anyone.
” I let him sit with that for a minute before continuing.
“On top of that, you find out we’re fated mates.
Now I understand if you’re upset. I should have told you before—”
“How could I ever be upset about that? I remember now—what happened when I had Devil’s Brew. Do you know why I got so upset that night?”
Huh. Releasing his powers must have unlocked his forgotten memories. “Not really, but you kept asking me not to leave you.”
“Mav told me you didn’t date because you were waiting for your fated mate. I thought some perfect guy was going to swoop in and you’d realise I wasn’t worth sticking around for.”
“Never.”
“I know that now.” He laughs. “And I can understand why you didn’t tell me we were mates before. I’m the one who said I wanted us to take things slowly.”
“It’s not that I didn’t want you to know, but I was worried you’d feel pressured or trapped. You’ve had so many bombs dropped on you since coming here, I didn’t want to be another unwanted surprise.”
Warm arms pull me into his firm chest. “I’ll always want you, Selene. I’m sorry I made you feel like you couldn’t tell me.” He kisses the crown of my head. “I’m glad you’re my mate. I couldn’t stand the thought of you leaving me for someone fate said was perfect for you.”
Rising to my tiptoes, I press a kiss to the underside of his jawline. “You’re my perfect match, Jared. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I love you. So fucking much.”
“I love you too.” Snuggling closer, I rest my head against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. After a while, the wind picks up, and even Jared shivers. “Come on, let’s get you inside. Your body’s been through a lot today—you need to rest.”