Page 12 of Hex Me (Immortal Vices and Virtues: All Hallows’ Eve #7)

Tamsin

T amsin could not believe Max had told Nigel they were lovers.

No. Actually, it was worse than that.

He’d told Nigel they were mates .

Not that she was against upsetting the blond asshole. He’d had it coming, and then some. But mates ? It was a blatant lie. She’d never felt the mating bond with Max, even if she’d been unwillingly drawn to him, time and time again. They were coworkers .

Out on the dance floor, the bass pulsed through the room, the rhythm syncopating with her heartbeat.

Magical lights strobed across the crowd, turning strangers into shifting, writhing shadows.

Max’s arm was wrapped firmly around her waist, with one of her hands on his shoulder, the other caught in the steel of his grip as they moved together.

“Why,” she hissed through clenched teeth, “did you tell him we were mates?”

“Ye were nae wearing a wedding ring or an engagement ring. He could argue with that. But mate ? No sane person would debate that.” Max’s voice was low…intimate as they twirled together.

“I know that. But why say it at all?”

Max leaned down, his breath brushing against the shell of her ear, making her shiver. “What else was I supposed to say? That some other guy was yer mate—while I had my arms around ye?”

Her lips parted and then closed again. Gods, she sounded ridiculous.

Still, the word clung to her skin. Mate . Like it was something that should have belonged, but slid off her skin the way water beads and rolls from an oiled surface.

The ballroom hummed with magic, power seeping into the air, the lights, the music. What was it about this place, this night, that made everything sharper, harder to ignore?

The song ended, and they stepped off the dance floor, moving into the relative quiet of another hallway.

Behind them, Nigel was still staring, his gaze like a weight between her shoulder blades.

Funny how he had rewritten the past: in his version, she had abandoned him .

His cheating hadn’t entered his story at all; his desire to sleep his way to the top at the expense of her heart had clearly been forgotten.

Max and Tamsin headed toward another room when Max stopped abruptly.

Looking up, Tamsin drew in a sharp breath as a woman came to a halt in front of them, her velvet gown the deep midnight blue of a moonless sky.

Her wide skirt skimmed the ground, the neckline daring but not too revealing.

The woman’s ears had the delicate points of the fae, her dark hair twisted up to reveal a long throat dusted in silver shimmer.

Tamsin had never seen her before—not in real life, and not in a vision of the future, either. Which was strange, as power clung to the woman like a second skin.

“How lovely to meet you in the flesh,” the fae woman practically purred, her voice smooth as silken bedsheets.

Max’s smile turned polished, dangerous. “We’re at a disadvantage, I’m afraid.”

“My name is Vaelora. I’m your hostess.”

“It’s wonderful to meet ye,” Max replied, all charm. Tamsin’s jaw tightened. A minute ago, he’d been calling her his mate, and now he was playing courtier with a fae. Him being turned into a toad was looking more and more likely…

“It’s lovely to meet you,” Tamsin said, ignoring her amphibious thoughts and dipping her chin. “I’m Tamsin Redthorne.”

“I know.” Vaelora’s smile sharpened. “Your reputation precedes you.”

There was irony in that statement, Tamsin knew.

“Have you been enjoying the ball?” Vaelora’s words were solicitous, but her voice held a low tone that ruffled Tamsin’s emotions.

The fae woman’s eyes dropped, not to Tamsin’s neckline—though instinct made her want to tug the fabric higher—but to the charms resting against her sternum.

With delicate fingers, Vaelora lifted the golden one Tamsin had begun wearing after Nigel, her gaze tightening.

“Although it seems as though you’re actively trying not to. ”

She let it fall.

The charm struck Tamsin’s chest with a dull thud, echoing through her like a gong.

“You can deny yourself love as much as you like. But that charm won’t keep the truth hidden forever.” Vaelora’s lip curled into a wicked grin as she took one step back.

Max turned to Tamsin. “What is she talking about?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Tamsin snapped, her own irritation prickling. She hated having her choices scrutinized, let alone condemned.

“No, tell me. What did she mean?” Max’s voice was careful, as if he was worried about her .

“I don’t know. It’s just a charm.” Tamsin slashed a hand through the air dismissively, trying to put an end to the conversation.

“Tsk, Tsk, Tamsin.” Vaelora waggled a finger like Tasmin was a child. “You’re really going to make me interfere like this?” The fae’s gaze leveled on Max. “That’s not just a charm. It’s an anti-love charm. It prevents her from feeling love—and it from finding her .”

Tamsin’s chest tightened. How did the fae woman know that? What kind of magic did she have?

Why have I never seen her before?

“What?” Max asked.

“You heard me.” Vaelora glided past the two of them, her head held high and seemingly proud of the distress she’d just caused.

“Enjoy your evening, my guests. I know I plan to.” Two men waited for her in the wings, each looping an arm around her intimately as she swayed between them, radiating power and peace.

They disappeared into the shadows of the mansion, leaving Tamsin feeling…hollow. Empty .

Max stared at Tamsin and she suddenly hated that she couldn’t read his emotions. That she had no idea what he was thinking. She wanted to rip the stupid glasses from his face so she could try and read every nuance of his expression.

Tamsin wet her lips, for some reason suddenly needing him to understand. “After Nigel…I didn’t want to be persuaded by emotions anymore.” She held up the necklace. “This kept me safe from that risk.”

Max’s eyes dropped to the charm again, his focus unnerving.

“My eyes are up here, you know,” she tried to joke, but it fell flat under his darkened gaze.

“Ye have been wearing that the entire time I’ve known ye?”

“Yes.”

In the next breath, his hand shot out. He yanked the chain around her neck, snapping it from her throat.

Her hand rose in protest. “Ouch! Max! What are you?—”

The charm dangled in his fist a moment before he dropped it to the marble ground and crushed it beneath his boot.

Something shifted in the air, alongside the audible crack of the charm breaking—like a wall being shattered from the inside.

Magic spilled through the break, sharp and hot and vicious at being caged.

Tamsin staggered back, her hand clutching at her chest. “That was mine,” she whispered. The world blurred around her as the remnants of the spell dissipated; the music, the voices, the steady hum of her own thoughts receding into a quiet stillness that was unnatural.

“Ye hobbled yerself,” Max growled, his words pulling her back to reality.

His voice had changed, was deeper, edged in an emotion she couldn’t identify.

His chest rose and fell too quickly, his nostrils flaring as if scenting prey as his expression grew increasingly turbulent, untamed. “Take us back to the hotel. Now.”

“But we need to stay—” She rubbed at her sternum, at the feeling of recognition that was turning her breathing ragged. She raised shocked eyes to his, realization slowly dawning.

“ Now .” He reached out, grabbing her forearm—his touch surprisingly gentle despite the tension riding his body; despite the barely contained power. “Take us there, now.”

“But—” Her skin burned where it met his, like she was being tattooed by his touch.

He leaned down, expression wild. “I’ll kill any man who comes near ye.”

Tamsin’s stomach dropped, and her whole body ignited, like a match lit from within. The air around them was heavy, as if weighed down by fate itself. Then it hit her like a thunderclap, the overwhelming certainty settling deep into her bones, into her DNA.

In that instant, two truths became clear in her mind: Max was on the verge of losing control; and the mating bond she’d never felt, hadn’t been able to, had sprung to life between them.

Fuck. They were one breath away from someone dying.

Barely thinking, Tamsin opened a portal. She had to get him out of there. Had to protect Max from himself. If a man approached her while the bond was new, fragile…after being denied for so long…

Max grabbed her, lifting her up. He practically leapt through the portal, his arms circling her body tightly, like he was afraid she’d up and disappear otherwise. That she’d run from him.

From them.

But there was no more running; no more dodging fate. Tamsin had never felt anything so visceral before, so true that it had etched itself into the very marrow of her bones.

They were truly mates.

And she’d been the one who had denied their bond for five years.

Tilting her chin up, she met Max’s furious stare and said the only words she could: “I’m sorry.”