Page 21 of One Last Wish (The Elder World)

D arce’s hand was inside my panties, rubbing my sweet spot relentlessly. My hips were rocking against his hand while his lips were devouring my hardened nipple, which he’d freed from the confines of my bra. I had already climaxed twice, and his mouth hadn’t gone anywhere near my sex yet. With the noise I was making, I was shocked that Evelyn hadn’t knocked on my bedroom door to check if I was alright.

His fingers slipped inside me, hitting that spot that made my entire body ignite.

“Shine for me, Alora. Let me see how much you’re enjoying this,” Darce murmured into my chest, licking over my other nipple before sucking it through his teeth.

When I cried out, he increased the pace of his fingers. I was all sensation and Darce, drowning in his scent, the feel of his fingers, the roughness of his tongue against my chest. My body was humming, thawing under his touch. He hit that spring inside me a few more times, and I fell, clawing at his back as I clung to the only reality I cared about: him.

“Gods, you are beautiful,” he sighed, sitting up to gaze down at me. “The bra and panties have to go, though.” With a click of his fingers, they were ripped from my body by shadows.

“Did you just...?” Having your underwear ripped off by shadows might have been the sexiest thing that had ever happened to me.

“Remove your underwear with darkness to get you naked quicker?” Darce finished my sentence. “Yep, I did that.”

“You said earlier you don’t do party tricks,” I challenged, watching him grip my legs and pull them wider.

“I’m a selfish creature, Alora. I only do party tricks for my own benefit.” I snorted at him, unable to help myself. I sobered instantly when his eyes narrowed on my sex. “It’s time to make you forget your own name.”

Squirming with need, I giggled as his teeth nipped at my calf. Then he slowly licked his way up towards my waiting sex.

“Oh, fuck! Evelyn is going to hear me if you carry on like that,” I moaned. My hands gripped his hair for a short moment as he bit softly on the inside of my thigh.

“I’ve soundproofed the room. You can be as loud as you want.” That response got a loud groan from me as I watched him gaze at me from between my legs. He was intoxicating.

Darce inhaled my sex, taking in my scent. Closing my eyes, I waited to feel his tongue on me. His broad shoulders forced my legs farther apart and I felt his hot breath an instant before his fingers parted me. That allowed him to take one long lick against my sex.

My hands found his hair again while he dug his fingers under my ass cheeks and held me in place. His tongue was relentless in exploring every inch of my centre, teasing my g-spot enough to make me yearn, but not reach a climax.

“Please, Darce!” I begged a while later, desperate for a release. “I...I...I...can’t take it.” At my words, he bit down on the inside of my thigh, making me cry out. His tongue flicked over my sensitive button one more time, and I shattered, my orgasm rising to the surface like a tidal wave.

Panting heavily, I lay there and focused on the ceiling to regulate my breathing. Four orgasms, yet I still craved more from this man.

“Did you need a minute before I start again?” Darce questioned, resting on his side next to me.

“It’s two in the morning! Were you planning on eating me out all night?”

“Yes.” Shit! His tone suggested that he wasn’t joking.

“We have work tomorrow, remember?”

“How about we both call in sick and spend the day right here?” His fingers traced the curve of my breasts. I considered it briefly, but knew Darce would keep my mind on things other than the questions I wanted answered if we did that.

“As amazing as that sounds, after the day I’ve had, normality would probably be better for me.”

“Did you want me to leave?”

“ No! ” I stressed, touching his face. It was so easy to get lost in the universe in his eyes. “Stay! Please don’t go anywhere.”

“I’ve always been right here, Alora,” he whispered, pulling me so I was resting on his chest. The contact of our bare skin made my arms and hands glow, and the gentle thump of his heart sent me into slumber. “I’ll keep you safe until my last breath,” I heard him coo as he planted a kiss on my forehead. “Sleep now.”

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T HE FEMALE VOICE HISSED at me. “Did you honestly think you could take him from me?” It was a dark figure, but I couldn’t make out the face. “You’re not even his race! How do you think that could possibly work? He’s been hiding you all this time!”

“If you tell Tamas and Duna, Darce will destroy you!” My voice was shaking as the figure backed me against a wall.

“He won’t find out if I kill you now. You haven’t even come into your powers. You are defenceless against me!”

“Darce will find out. He’ll kill you himself.”

“You lovesick, foolish female! You think he cares that much for you?” The figure laughed darkly. “You are merely a plaything for him. He’ll tire of you within a century, I guarantee it. I’m the one that can match his power. One day we’ll rule this veil together. He cannot run from his destiny, and that, my dear, Alora , is linked to mine ! You will never have him, because Darce belongs to me !”

“Take another step closer and I’ll scream,” I warned, throwing the books that were on the shelf behind me.

“You and your books. They can’t save you this time.” Shadows and sparks of electricity radiated from her hands. “Any last words?” she cackled, shooting her power right above my head. “I’ll make sure that Darce receives them.”

Closing my eyes, I waited for the final blow, which never came.

“Alora!” Darce bellowed, rushing into the room and surrounding me in some form of dark mist forcefield. “Charna, what are you doing ?”

“She’s Dylin, Darce. What were you thinking ? I am saving you! She will get you killed!”

“And you think taking her from me won’t kill me?”

“We can’t trust her!”

“No, Charna, it would appear I cannot trust you .” The figure dropped to the floor in pain. “You would really hurt a defenceless creature? I should kill you myself for that.” Darce seethed. With a twist of his hand, the figure screamed in agony. “I will not kill you, but our loyalty bond is broken. You are nothing to me! If you speak of any of this to Tamas or Duna, I will end you!”

“I’m your chosen one, Darce,” Charna cried out. “You cannot do this to me...to us!”

“I’ve made my choice and it’s not you!” Darce snapped before turning to look at me with loving eyes. As he moved towards me, the mist forcefield evaporated. He scooped me up in his arms and carried me away without so much as a look at the figure on the floor. “Are you hurt?” he asked once we had cleared the room.

“She knows what I am.”

“I know. Now might be a good time to send you home. I cannot risk you being here any longer. No matter how much I enjoy having you in my bed every night, I cannot afford to be selfish. Not where you are concerned.”

“We knew you couldn’t hide me forever. You may have changed my hair colour, but I still stand out.”

“I’ll send you home tomorrow.” With a nod, he leant down and pressed his lips against mine.

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W HEN I OPENED MY EYES , everything was covered in darkness. How was it still dark? I felt like I had slept for days. Darce was lying peacefully next to me when I rolled over. His body was radiating swirls of shadow that were filling my room.

I really hadn’t learned anything from last night's dream. What I did know was that Darce was a shadow wielder, and I...well, I had no idea what I was. I had a name for it, though: Dylin . I was Dylin, whatever that meant.

I stretched out, wanting to explore the contours of his chest, but his hand reached out to grab my wrist. “If you touch me, Alora, we won’t be going to work today.”

“You stayed!” I beamed, watching the darkness diffuse around us. I squinted at the sudden light.

“You asked me to. I never break a promise.” I leaned in, pecking his lips softly. “I might have to project us near work, though. We’re probably going to be late.” I finally looked at the time. We only had twenty minutes until we were due for our shift.

“Shit!” I jumped up, grabbing my clothes. Darce chuckled at me, casually putting on a fresh work shirt. “How do you have fresh clothes?”

“Shadow magic,” he shrugged, like it should have been obvious. “Did you want some help?”

“How?” I questioned. Darce clicked his fingers, and suddenly, I was washed and dressed, with my hair up in a very neat bun. “That is insane! ” I gasped, looking down at myself. “How powerful is this shadow magic?”

“We don’t have time to discuss that right now. Come on, I’ll project us. We’ll be early for work now.” He made another dark whirlpool similar to last night. This time when I took his hand, I wasn’t scared.

The whirlpool dropped us at the back of an alley, next to Bookends. “I’m starting to realise why you were never late for work,” I murmured with a smile.

“It’s the fastest way to travel.” Darce moved, taking my hand in his. I frowned, looking at our linked fingers. Since when was he all about skin contact? “I might have bent Theo’s mind to suggest that you and I are dating now.”

“Oh!”

“It seems the obvious choice to get everyone off our backs.” It made sense, but I had no idea what Darce and I were. We had a lot to discuss, including my dream last night. I needed to find out who Charna was and if Dylin was the word for what I was. “Alora, where did your mind go?” Darce asked, snapping me from my thoughts.

“Sorry, my mind slipped back to last night.”

“Mmm...which part? I hope it was the hours that you were naked and being teased by my fingers and tongue.” I was blushing by the time we reached Bookends.

Theo arrived a few minutes after we’d opened the store.

“Morning, Alora. Darce. How was your surprise date last night?” He was looking at me with such indifference that I frowned at him.

“It was wonderful, thanks,” Darce called back. “Alora has agreed to spend Christmas with me. I told you I’d wear her down.”

“When did I agree to this?”

“After your third orgasm last night,” Darce smirked, pecking my lips. Okay, that might have been true.

“I’ll go put the lights on upstairs and restock the shelves,” I told Darce and Theo. Everything had changed in the blink of an eye and I could hardly keep up. Daisy walked in, all sunshine and Christmas cheer. With a quick wave to her from the staircase, I continued my way up the stairs. When I touched the wooden banister, an image flashed in my mind.

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I WAS IN A BEAUTIFUL library, not too different from Bookends, but on a much larger scale. The books were ancient, all bound in different coloured leathers. The skylight stained glass picture above was two blistering, giant yellow suns that swirled in a never ending pattern. Not too unlike my own markings. Where was this place, and why did it feel so familiar?

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“H EY.” DARCE CAME UP behind me, so I shook my head to clear the image from my mind. “You blanked out for a few minutes. Are you okay?”

“I’ve been in a place like this before, but the skylight was two burning suns.”

“You saw the library?” Darce gasped. “Alora, that’s incredible. Your mind is advancing faster than we thought.”

“Where is this library? The books were really old .”

“It’s a place that always felt like home to you.”

“What does Dylin mean?” He froze beside me. “Last night, I dreamt of a dark figure that tried to kill me. She said she knew I was Dylin.”

“You don’t need to worry about all of this right now. Allow yourself time to remember. Bombarding your mind with everything all at once is dangerous.”

“Her name was Charna. You were meant to be hers.”

“No one owns me or my choices!” Darce spat. I recoiled a little at his outburst. “Sorry, Charna wasn’t a conversation I thought we’d be having first.” His face softened. “What else happened in this dream of yours?” We had moved to the side of the fantasy section where no one could see us.

“She explained that I was defenceless because I hadn’t come into my power yet.” Darce ran his hand through my hair, almost as if to shake off the memory I was explaining to him. “I must have been staying with you. I have no idea where, but you were sending me back home.”

“I was doing it to keep you safe.”

“Are you telling me these dreams were real events?” Darce nodded. “This is what you mean about my mind breaking down. Am I starting to remember things because you came back into my life?”

“I’ve never been out of your life, Alora.”

“Why am I remembering the moment you started to show up then?”

“I’ve been in the darkness, keeping my distance. You called out to me a week before the bridge incident. You made me show up.”

“How?”

“I didn’t understand at the time, but now I know it was because you were starting to awaken.”

“Oh. My. God! Can’t you give me any proper answers! Waking up from what? ”

“I can’t tell you that.” Ugh!

“Of course you can’t.” I threw my hands up in the air before storming off. “I’m going to do some work on The Broken Reach Fae Ball! I need something to clear my head.” I froze, an idea entering my thoughts. Could we be magical creatures?

“We’re not fairies , Alora,” Darce called out to me, chuckling. “That’s what you were about to ask, wasn’t it?” I gave him a scowl and then stomped into the backroom that I’d cleared to prepare for the ball. Darce gave me the space I needed for a few hours.

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“Y OU AND DARCE THEN ?” Daisy raised an eyebrow while we looked over the planning so far. “I did wonder. You two have had a weird vibe for a few weeks. I’m guessing the date with Theo didn’t go well?”

“Yeah, Darce wore me down in the end.”

“Is he your date for the ball?” How many times did I have to tell her that the ball was a work event! “Alice is thinking of asking Theo, that’s all. If you’ve made your choice.” Wow...Theo and Alice. I didn’t see that coming.

“Oh, yeah, Darce is definitely my date.”

“I can’t believe it’s only three weeks away. Once we get through Christmas, it will be here before we know it.”

That made me panic a little, but on the scale of things I needed to worry about, it was pretty low.

I had a power inside me that I knew nothing about, other than it was some form of light, and my pretend boyfriend was a shadow wielder that almost certainly has known me all my life.

How was that even possible?