Page 16 of Dream Lost (The Fae Universe #12)

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B ridget woke the following day grumpy, agitated, and, most of all… sexually unfulfilled. Bloody Bas, with his oh-so-sexy threats, had been all she could think about all night long, and she had to eventually take matters into her own hands just to get to sleep.

What a jerk. Her brain also had to reframe everything she had learned about him so far. There was no doubt that he was a genuinely good guy with excellent cooking skills. But now she knew most of that was a mask, and something dark and sexy was also hiding under that polished surface.

Jesus. She really had to stop thinking about how his lips had felt on hers and how she had rubbed against him like a cat in heat. She was never that forward. She didn’t have the confidence.

Bridget didn’t have issues getting sex when she wanted it, but it took a lot for her to want it. That wasn’t going to be an issue when it came to Bas. She had almost been crawling up onto him from one kiss. Of course, he had to be good at kissing.

Bas had gotten her all flustered and had just walked away. I definitely want you to think about it . Fuck him. It was all she was going to think about now. That was a part of his plan. What a dick. A sexy, sexy dick.

Don’t think about his dick. It was hard not to. She had felt it pressing up against her, and now, it was forever imprinted on her mind and lady parts.

Bridget found her way to the kitchen and helped herself to coffee and toast. She wasn’t usually an early riser, but there was no point staying in bed, bored and horny. She carried her coffee and the file of articles on the attacks up to the library.

In the quiet hush, Bridget allowed herself to stare and stare in a way she hadn’t the previous day. She put her things down on a wooden study desk and turned on the lamp beside it. She opened the desk drawers and found pens and an empty notepad. Something inside of her settled. She might have no idea how to do dating or flirting, but research? Research she could do.

First, Bridget made a list of the victims’ names, addresses, and the date they were attacked. They had all occurred in the past year. It lined up with what Bas had said about the fae kings fixing magic, and the theory that it was an ancient creature seemed more plausible.

Bridget wandered through the library until she found a wall of wooden drawers filled with a card catalogue. She wrote down a list of books on Celtic mythology and monsters. She was gathering a stack of books in her arms when she felt something tingle behind her eyes.

“Bas?” she whispered.

Where are you hiding, Bridget? he answered. It should unnerve her that he could use telepathy, but she knew he wouldn’t rummage in her mind without her permission. She knew she could lift that mental brick wall up when she needed it.

I’m in the library, researching, she replied.

Warm amusement from him. Did you not sleep well?

No. Some asshole gave me too much to think about before bed.

His amusement turned to feral delight. Bridget’s grip on the ancient books tightened.

I’m going to have a shower, and I’ll make my way to you soon. Someone gave me a lot to think about too that I have to deal with.

Bridget’s mouth went dry, and the tingling behind her eyes disappeared.

“Mother of god,” she whispered. She was in no way prepared for images of a sleepy Bas in the shower at this time of morning, doing who knows what to himself. Heat flushed over her face as her mind provided her with unhelpful images.

He would look even hotter naked. From what she had seen the night at the bar, his chest was the good kind of hairy, and from what she had felt through his clothes, he was well-built. Strong enough that he could have picked her up and pressed her against the wall the previous night.

Bridget put the books down on the desk and tried to take some breaths to clear her head. She was going to have to work with him every day until the dream creature was dead. Lusting after him wouldn’t help anyone.

“Good morning, Bridget,” Cosimo said from behind her.

She let out a strangled cry of surprise. “Fuck! Ah. Sorry. Good morning. You scared the life out of me.”

“Terribly sorry, my dear. I have that map of Dublin that I promised you,” Cosmo replied and placed a rolled-up scroll onto the table. He looked over the notes that she had been compiling that morning. “Have you made any progress?”

Bridget showed him her list of attacks. “If there is a pattern other than these attacks happening during the same year in the same city, I haven’t found it yet.” She unrolled the map and placed some of her books in the corners to keep it straight. “I’m hoping that if I plot these addresses down, we might start to get a better picture of its hunting grounds.”

Cosimo nodded. “It’s a good start. Bas said that this creature hunted you in the astral plane. It already had gotten a hook into you, but thankfully, the protections around the mansion removed it. Do you remember anything strange happening at all in the previous days?”

“The strangest thing that’s happened to me this year was having your son wandering into my mind palace. It’s the first time I had ever seen anyone there,” Bridget admitted.

Cosimo smiled with fatherly pride. “My boys are all exceptional, and if anyone was going to find a way into someone else’s mind palace, it was going to be Bas. Would it be too forward of me to ask if you like him?”

Bridget tried desperately not to think of making out with his son the previous night. She had never been grilled by someone else’s parent before.

“Probably a lot more than I should,” she admitted.

“Why would that be a problem?” he pressed, his head tilting to one side. It was a gesture that she had seen Bas do before.

Bridget didn’t know how to politely say what was on her mind, so she went with honesty. “I don’t think I’m the kind of girl that your son would be interested in long term. I don’t want to get more attached to him if, after we catch this monster, we go our separate ways.”

She quickly shut her mouth and bit her tongue so hard that she tasted blood in her mouth. Maybe she should’ve said nothing at all so she wouldn’t feel like shit now that the truth she had been thinking about all night wouldn’t have come out. To his fucking dad . Bridget wanted to bang her head on the desk.

Cosimo had a small, amused smile on his face. “Somehow, I don’t think my son will be deterred so quickly or easily. He found you in the astral plane twice and then in the real world. I don’t think fate will let you slip away when you have finally found each other. You both have very rare gifts that make you powerful but isolate you from nearly everyone around you.”

“What’s your point?” Bridget replied, folding her arms.

“My point is neither one of you is alone anymore, and that’s a very good thing. Good luck with the research today, Bridget. I’ll see you at dinner,” Cosimo said, and with a nod goodbye, he disappeared into the stacks.

Not alone anymore. Bridget didn’t even know what it would feel like. She swallowed the burning lump in her throat and turned back to the map, determined to put the whole awkward conversation out of her mind.

It was easier said than done because even though she knew it was going to be a terrible idea to crush on someone like Bas Greatdrakes, she also knew she wasn’t going to be able to stop.