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Epilogue

CHLOE

“Just the lassie I wanted to see.”

I turned at the sound of Alec’s voice…and immediately caught my breath at the sight of him leaning against the tower room’s doorway with a crooked grin on his handsome face. Would I ever stop being taken aback by his sexiness? Probably not.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Ogling you.”

“Well, that’s a given.” He swept his gaze around the room. “I meant what are you doing up here? Lach and I have been looking all over the castle for you. I was ready to bake something with chocolate in it just to lure you to the kitchen.”

I put my hands on my hips. “I’m offended. Also, what were you thinking of baking?”

His grin spread as he sauntered over and took me in his arms. Light from the window turned his eyes the color of spring leaves, but his voice was a dark, smoky autumn. “You have a sweet tooth, hmm?”

I nodded, my skin tingling where he touched me. “An insatiable one, as it turns out.”

“However will we remedy that?”

“I don’t know. It’s—” My words were smothered by his hot mouth on mine. His tongue invaded, plunging and conquering, and his hands stroked a blazing path down my neck to my chest. He cupped my breast, his thumb finding my nipple through my shirt. When I moaned and thrust into his hand, he chuckled against my lips and pinched the hardened peak.

After several long, sensual minutes, he pulled away with a groan and rested his forehead against mine with his big arms wrapped around me. “Need to fuck you, but I dinnae want to do it in this tower.”

“Me neither,” I said, struggling to catch my breath. “It’s too cold.”

“What were you doing in here?”

I gnawed my lower lip as I debated giving him some bullshit excuse. But I couldn’t keep the truth from him for long. He’d taught me how to shield my thoughts, but there was no stopping a Seelie prince from sidestepping mental barriers if he really wanted to. So I took a deep breath. “I was testing the bars on the window. I wanted to see if they’d hold a vampire.”

He reared back, a reddish eyebrow shooting up. “A leech? Whatever for?”

My cheeks heated. “I wanted to experiment a little. See if I can draw power consciously.” In the month since we returned to the castle, I’d focused on learning everything I could about my newfound abilities. Donums were so rare, even Lachlan knew of only a couple others in the world. So far, I’d learned my gift literally meant “gift” and that I could accidentally kill myself if I drew too much power.

Wonderful.

But there were also benefits. If I could learn to control the power draw, I could temporarily take on the abilities of any of the Firstborn Races. Lachlan called it “short-term invincibility.” Which was kind of awesome.

Alec frowned. “You pull from me and Lach all the time.”

“That’s just it. You’re the only magical beings I’m around. I guess I just wanted some variety.”

“So you thought you’d kidnap a vampire and hold him prisoner so you can absorb his powers?”

“Um…yes?”

His eyes darkened. “Fuck, honey, that’s actually pretty hot.” He drew me more tightly against him. “I like this bloodthirsty side of you.”

I moaned when he lowered his head and kissed me again, then I gasped when he smoothed a hand over my ass and nudged the plug nestled between my cheeks. Even with my panties and jeans in the way, the slight movement was enough to make me instantly aroused.

He smiled against my lips. “You’re after variety, eh, sweetheart?”

My heart pounded. I’d been skeptical about the plug when he and Lachlan first showed it to me.

“You want to put that where?” I’d asked.

The guys had laughed. Then Alec had kissed the frown off my face, explaining, “It takes both of us to claim you. And, not to brag, but we’re not exactly small lads, if you catch my meaning.” He’d drawn back, a mix of lust and mischief in his eyes. “Trust me when I say a few days with a toy in your arse and you’ll be begging for the real thing.” He’d exchanged a heated look with Lachlan and added, “I speak from experience.”