Page 183 of Never Kiss a Fae

His assessment left me reeling.

Because, for one, I didn’t mate with Exos because I wanted to. It’d been on accident. Same with Cyrus. And I hadn’t chosen Vox only out ofneed. Although, I could see why he felt that way.

Who knew the Air Fae was so emotional? Exos drawled.Kiss him, Claire. That’ll solve it.

I nearly fell over.What?

You heard me, princess. Kiss the man.Exos spoke the words as a demand, but a hint of amusement underlined them.

I don’t—

Claire, male fae thrive on action. And all of yours thus far have Vox feeling left out. Just kiss him. Trust me.

Had my behavior made him think I wasn’t interested? Maybe. I had been quite reluctant. A brat, really, considering how patient all these men were with me.

All right. Time to fix that. To put all the confusion to rest and move forward.

I stepped closer to Vox, caught the wild frays of his energy, the uncertainty swirling around him, and the general hurt beneath the surface. My element reached out to soothe his, to brush the harsher strands and mingle our elements in an intimate manner. “Vox,” I murmured, moving into his personal space. “I initiated the bond with you because our powers are a match. And”—I took a final step—“I like you.” Perhaps we weren’t at the same level as I was with Exos or Titus, but I sensed the potential. If he’d let me in and gave me a chance.

Which meant I needed to show him my interest, to ground him the way he’d grounded me last week. I went to my toes and brushed my lips over his. Just a tender stroke, one meant to entice and invite, and wrapped my arms around his neck. The second kiss was a little more forceful on my part, begging him to react. And by the third, his lips finally reciprocated, the shock of my touching him receding into a passionate flurry of wind.

“Claire?” he questioned, his mouth against mine.

“Vox.” I smiled. “Please kiss me.” I could feel his desire to thrumming through my veins; otherwise, I would have backed off by now. But it was a tangible presence, tangling with my aura in the most alluring of ways.

Vox and I were more alike than he likely wanted to admit. He seemed to fear his magic overruling him, just as I had feared my fae half.

“Give in to your instincts,” I whispered. “I did.” Sometime over the last week, with Cyrus’s help, I’d accepted my magic and my nature, my most inner desires, and my passion. And it’d only made me stronger.

One of his hands fell to my hip, gripping tightly. The other thread through my hair, tugging my strands into his fist as he positioned me where he wanted.

And then he took me.

Not hard. Not rushed. Not fast. Just thoroughly. Expertly. As if his mouth was designed just for mine, his tongue knowing and skilled, and stole my breath away. It was the perfect kind of embrace, one where the wind lightly brushed us both, whirling us into a cloud of perfection and yearning. Only, a hungry presence at my back confused my senses, earthy tones mingling with mine and heightening the moment to one of irresistible lust.

Vox turned me in his arms, right into Sol, who was waiting to catch me—with his mouth.

My heart skipped a beat at the synchronization, at the feel of having two strong and capable men holding me as if I were their reason for being, and at sensing their undeniable longing for more.

I shuddered, my elements flourishing to life.

This was what I needed. How I wanted to exist. What I required for breath.

My mates.

All five.

Creating a harmony of energy inside me, begging to be stroked and tempered, and my fae reacted in kind, each of them sending me what I needed to harness my control and allow me to just be.

I lost track of time between Sol and Vox, their rotating mouths and hands leaving me hot and bothered in the middle of nowhere. But my missing link pulled me from the haze, my elements even more honed and alive and ready.

“He’s near,” I whispered, opening my eyes to find Vox’s striking eyes glazed with passion. With his willingness traveling through the bond, I felt even more empowered, everything around me falling into sharper focus.

“Where?” Vox asked, his palm running up and down my arm, as if addicted to my energy.

And maybe he was. I felt the same about him, my fingers still woven through his thick, long hair. My other palm had reached up behind me, clasping Sol’s neck, his palm around my throat, not in a threatening manner but in a protective one. I relaxed back into him, absorbing his strength, and closed my eyes tofeelthe earth and search for the presence beneath the ground that should not be there.

The elements responded, bowing to my growing power, their worship intensifying with every breath.