Page 22 of One Last Wish (The Elder World)

“Y ou’re spending Christmas with Darce ?” Evelyn choked on her glass of wine that I’d forced upon her. I was hoping if I got her a little tipsy, she wouldn’t ask too many questions. “Wait. Have the two of you...?” she trailed off.

“We’re kind of seeing each other,” I admitted, looking away from her stunned face.

“Alora, you do not date! What the hell is going on?”

“Darce...he kind of got to me.”

“You like each other, don’t you?” She was clapping her hands excitedly! “I fucking knew it! See? You can feel things. It only takes the right person.” I wasn’t sure Darce was a person, but I couldn’t tell her that. “Where are you spending Christmas? Here or at his place?”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t mind us spending it here.” I was sure she was heading back home for the holidays.

“Of course! I’ll be with my parents, anyway. You’ll have the entire apartment to yourself.”

Bookends was closed for a few days. Book Junkies did a massive sale the day after Christmas, so there was no point opening the shop until the twenty-seventh. We couldn’t compete with their discounts. The Fae Ball in January would be our money winner. We had already sold over three hundred tickets. I wasn’t sure we would be able to fit more than four hundred people in the book shop. It was going to involve moving a lot of furniture on the ground floor and upstairs, but we had plenty of time to do it.

“Thanks.” The thought of two days alone with Darce made my body react in a feral way. I began to wonder how many times he could make me cum in two days.

“He’s really done a number on you, hasn’t he?” Evelyn was studying my face while I daydreamed about the powers of Darce’s tongue. “Was he that good?”

“Mmmm...” Biting my lip, I looked up at the ceiling.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” she snorted, taking a sip of her wine. “It looks good on you.”

“What does?” I frowned.

“Happiness.” Evelyn winked. “Don’t fuck in my bed while I’m away, though, okay?” I slapped her arm as she laughed hysterically.

Christmas with Darce was going to be interesting.

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“Y OU brOUGHT ME A GIFT ?” I asked as Darce handed me something wrapped in dark cloth.

“Not a gift. Something useful. Hopefully, it’s the right size.” He watched me open it. I smiled at the fighting leathers wrapped within the cloth.

“Are you tired of seeing me in these thin garments?” I motioned to the white, almost see through fabric that was wrapped over clothes that resembled a golden bra and panties set.

“If you want to become a warrior, you must look the part. Pretty, alluring clothes do not win battles.”

“You are not affected by my body, at all?”

“Alora, I am teaching you to fight . If you want me to teach you how to fuck , that is an entirely different lesson.”

Annoyed at his outburst, I crossed my arms and glared at him. “You did not answer my question.”

“Do you want me to teach you how to fuck instead?” Quirking an eyebrow, he smirked down at my shocked face.

“NO! You disgusting prick!”

“Well, stop asking stupid questions and put those fighting leathers on! We have a lot of work to do!”

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R ESTLESS WITH FRUSTRATION , I woke up when my hand slammed into a hard chest. Darce . Darce had been sleeping next to me until I unintentionally smacked him.

“Hey, what’s with the lashing out?” he chuckled, moving some of the darkness away that shrouded us. “Are you always this violent in bed?”

“We hated each other in the beginning, didn’t we?”

“Were you having another dream?” He turned on his side to face me, tracing the outline of my jaw with his fingertips. Nodding, I reached out and got lost in the indents on his chest. Darce allowed me to touch him this time, the resolve fading in his eyes. “What did you dream about?”

“You bought me some fighting leathers.” Darce smirked at the memory. “Did you ever teach me how to fuck?”

“Training you to fight was more important at that time.”

“Why were you training me, anyway?”

“You asked,” he said simply. “It was hard to deny you, even then.”

“How long ago was this?”

“Nice try, Alora.” He gave me a typical ‘Darce’ look when I’d irritated him a little. “You know I can’t give anything away.”

“Why, exactly?”

“You have to gain your memories back naturally, otherwise you’ll regress and forget everything instead.” Shit! It was serious ! The thought of forgetting about Darce terrified me. “Now that you’ve awoken, I can’t lose you again.” In an instant, his lips were hard against mine. I groaned into his mouth, my hands gripping his shoulders as he pulled me flush with his body. Because I was only wearing a nightshirt, it gave Darce access to my bare legs. When his hands gripped my ass, I lost control and rolled on top of him.

“I know what I want as my Christmas gift. Teach me how to fuck , please,” I yearned, thrusting my heated centre against the bulge in his slacks.

“Holy Ether! Alora! ” Darce hissed through his teeth, trying to control himself. “We can’t...not like this.” He grabbed my arms and tried to still me, but I was already rocking against him. “Fuck! Stop! Please. ”

“It’s Christmas Eve, and you just told me that it’s hard to deny me anything .”

“You can have anything but that right now. You have to trust me!” Finally, he regained his control and moved me off of him. “As much as I want to be buried inside you, I can’t.”

“Have we ever...you know...fucked?”

“Have you dreamt it?”

“We’ve been pretty close, but I’ve never seen any penetration .” His eyes had a spark of humour in them at my choice of word. “If we haven’t fucked, but we’ve been together as long as I think we have, you must have a serious case of blue balls.”

Darce let out a loud chortle. “Let me worry about my balls. You have bigger things to worry about.”

“Have you considered my offer of a blowjob? It seems unfair that I’m getting all the pleasure.”

“I get enough pleasure watching you come undone. Do not worry about my needs, Alora.”

“The bulge in your slacks would suggest otherwise.” The bulge seemed larger. The sheer size of it was making my mouth water. “Are you sure I can’t give you a Christmas gift?” I fluttered my eyelashes at him, trying to look seductive. He let out a breath of air, shaking his head.

“You never change. You always push me to my final strand of decorum.” Sitting up, he reached for his top and put it on over his head. “Stop tempting me with those beautiful eyes.”

“What are you doing?” I pouted, watching him get off my bed. He whisked the shadows away with a swirl of his hand. Oh, it was daylight. Christmas morning, to be precise. “Why do you make us sleep with shadows around us?”

“I have my reasons. Get dressed. I’ll make a start on breakfast.”

“What are we even doing today?”

“I have a few plans. Do I need to carry you to the bathroom?”

“No.” I giggled as he grabbed at my ankles. “I’m getting up!”

I was carefree, washing my body and hair in the shower. Being around Darce...I couldn’t deny it anymore. He brought out feelings within me. Strong feelings. Having these emotions were hard to deal with because that was something I had never experienced until now. It was almost painful sometimes. I hadn’t been able to take a deep breath since my powers had awoken. I almost felt fragile, like I might crack at any moment.

The smell of pancakes and bacon filled my nostrils as I walked into the kitchen, pat drying my hair with a small towel.

“This looks amazing,” I called out, watching Darce flip the bacon over in the pan. The pancakes were all cooked and stacked up, ready to eat. The table was set for us, and included two glasses of orange juice and some freshly brewed coffee. “You’re very domesticated for a shadow daddy.”

“Alora, call me that one more time and I’ll spank you with the spatula in my hand.” His tone was deadly serious, and for a second, I swear it flashed across his mind to actually do it.

“You wouldn’t!” I gasped as his eyes became wickedly dark.

“Do you really want to test that theory? I have asked you countless times not to refer to me as a shadow daddy. ”

“Does it offend you that much?”

“‘Offend’ is probably the wrong word. What I am , Alora, is so much more than shadows. When you finally remember everything, you’ll understand.”

“You’re Noxlin,” I blurted out, suddenly remembering that name from my dreams. Darce’s eyes widened, and I could see what looked like pain flash in those dark orbs of his. “I have no idea what Noxlin is, but I remember you telling me that our races hate each other. Noxlin and Dylin can’t mix.”

“Do you remember why?” he asked, placing the cooked bacon onto a plate. I tried to force the memory to my mind—the reason was on the tip of my tongue—but it kept slipping away. “Don’t force it. I was just curious,” Darce soothed, touching my face softly.

“Was I right about you being Noxlin? That we’re not meant to be together?”

“Yes,” he sighed, looking over at the table. “Come on. Let’s eat. You’ve got gifts to open, too.”

“I do ?” I hadn’t had a Christmas present since my father passed away. Who the hell had gotten me a gift? Darce motioned towards the small tree in the living room that Evelyn had put up last week. Under it were four gifts. Four?

“You must have been a good girl this year if Santa has left you presents.” The smirk on his face made me wonder if he had something to do with some of the gifts.

“Have you brought me fighting leathers again?” I teased as he pulled a chair out from under the table, motioning for me to sit down and eat.

“You wouldn’t get much use out of fighting leathers in New York.”

“You’ve witnessed the Black Friday Sales, right?” I filled my plate with some pancakes and bacon, topping it all with maple syrup. Darce chuckled, helping himself to the food, too. “What do you have planned for us today, anyway?”

“I have one idea, but you’ll need to wrap up really warm for it.” Now I was intrigued. “You have to open your gifts first, though.”

“I haven’t had a Christmas gift in eight years,” I admitted, my eyes stinging a little. Holy crap! Were there tears falling down my face ? After wiping them away, I studied my fingertip. “What’s happening? I...I’ve...never.... This has never happened before.”

“It’s the awakening, Alora. You’ll start to feel a lot of things.”

“Are you trying to tell me that being emotionless isn’t who I really am?” Had I somehow been trapped inside this body? What if I was some magical light beast that had been tricked into this form? What if I was a god !?

“What’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours? I can literally see the gears working.”

“Am I some mythical light creature that was trapped inside this body?”

“What would that make me?” The amused look on his face told me that I was nowhere near working out what or who I was. “What even makes you think you’re trapped inside that body? Your body is very beautiful. It’s definitely not a prison.”

“I’m clutching at straws at this point. I have no idea what I am, other than it has something to do with light. You are clearly something to do with the dark. We are complete opposites.”

“Dark is a better way to describe me than a shadow daddy .”

“Noted,” I grinned, taking a mouthful of food. “Damn, you can really cook.” I groaned, tasting the perfect balance of the sweet pancakes and salty bacon.

“I don’t know why you’re shocked. I’m good at everything .”

“That ego of yours gets bigger by the day.” He shrugged in agreement as we finished off the food on our plates.

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O NCE WE HAD WASHED and cleared away our breakfast dishes, I made my way over to the Christmas tree. Two of the gifts underneath were from Evelyn. I rolled my eyes, remembering the ‘ no gifts ’ conversation we’d had last year. It was just like her to not listen to me!

The other two gifts were expertly wrapped. One was a small box with gold, shimmering paper, and the other was a larger gift in red, Christmas-patterned paper that had to be some form of clothing with how soft it was. Neither of them had a tag to say who they were from.

“These two are from you, aren’t they?” I asked, reading Darce’s face.

“Why would you think that?”

“One...I don’t believe in Santa anymore. Two...these gifts are wrapped by someone that clearly has perfectionist issues.”

“Open the damn gifts, Alora. Unwrap Evelyn’s first.” Doing as he asked. I opened the first gift, knowing it was a book. It was a spin-off series from a popular vampire collection that I’d been talking about. The other was a set of expensive wireless headphones. Evelyn had spent too much. I’d have to talk to her about that when I saw her.

“Which gift of yours did you want me to open first?” Darce was watching me so intently that I suspected a memory might have caused the warm smile on his face.

“The larger one.” I ripped into the paper quickly. Inside was a beautiful set of white, fluffy pyjamas.

“I know how much you enjoy reading in comfortable loungewear.”

“I love them! You really didn’t have to get me anything, though.”

“You’ve been alone for too long, Alora. I couldn’t watch you going without a moment longer. Open the small box now.” This gift was a little harder to open; Darce had wrapped it well. When I did finally open the box it was in, I gasped at the stunning golden necklace and pendant inside. The pendant was shaped like a heart with a sparkling jewel in the middle.

“Darce, I can’t accept this. It’s too much.” I traced the pendant with my fingertips when, suddenly, a flashback snapped into my mind.

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“I WILL never take it off!” I beamed as Darce placed the necklace around my neck. I touched the heart pendant, stroking the jewel inside.

“I have had a protection spell put on it. She will not get to you with this pendant. I need to know you are safe at all times, Alora. If anything were to happen to you...” Darce couldn’t finish his thoughts. Touching the side of his face, I stroked his cheek. “I’m falling in love with you, Alora. I know it goes against everything that we are, but I can’t stop.”

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I STAGGERED BACK AS I broke from the flashback. “What did you see?” Darce asked, studying my face.

“This used to be mine and had a protection spell on it,” I muttered, still reeling from his words. He was falling in love with me. When was this? Did he love me now? Had I loved him ? There were too many questions that I was scared to ask right then.

“Yes. I couldn’t stand the thought of you being helpless when I couldn’t be with you.”

“I told you that I’d never take it off. Clearly, at some point, I did.”

“You had no choice but to remove it. The main thing is that this pendant is back where it should be...keeping you safe at all times.” Grabbing the box from me, Darce took the pendant in his fingertips and gently fastened it on me, kissing the nape of my neck once it was in place. “Do you want your third gift?” he purred, pulling me flush against his front. “It’s something you’ve had a few times now, but my tongue is having withdrawals from how delicious you taste.” He was side tracking me from asking more questions, but my traitorous body was already humming for him. “I’ll take your silence as a yes,” he chuckled, kissing down my neck.

“Will you let me return the favour and give you a gift?”

“Absolutely not. I’ve told you, watching your pleasure is more than enough for me.” Darce moved his lips along my collarbone as he gripped my hips.

“Darce, I love foreplay with you—don’t get me wrong—but at some point, I’ll need more and so will you.” With every touch, my body was on overdrive. The more time we spent this way, the more... connected I felt to him. I wanted his skin under my fingertips. I needed to feel him everywhere. The thought of Darce inside me... I was delirious.

“That time will come. When the need takes over any rational thoughts we have, I’ll let go. We both will.”

“By letting go...you mean... sex ?” I felt so stupid asking, but my mind wasn’t giving me clear answers yet. It was drip feeding me information one random glimpse of a memory at a time.

“Yes,” he chuckled against my neck as his hands moved across my stomach. “Can I make you cum now, Alora? It might help with your memories.” With a groan, I gave in. His hands slipped inside my leggings so he could pull them down my body. Darce sat on the sofa in front of me, his nose even with my sex. “Turn around and bend over,” he purred, inhaling my arousal. What the hell was he planning to do to me in that position? With only a second of hesitation, I did as he asked. I felt his hands caress my butt cheeks, kneading and fondling them. “Bend over a little more. I need to see that delicious cunt of yours.”

Holding in a groan, I bent over a little more, exposing myself to him completely. He grabbed my hips roughly at the same time I felt his tongue on me. It was running dangerously close to my asshole, but dipped into my yearning sex. I had nothing to hold onto, so Darce held my hips to keep me in place. His hot, long tongue made long, quick licks across my sensitive skin. I cried out, needing everything he was giving me and more. No one was able to read my body like him. I knew it had to do with our connection. We had probably known each other a long time, maybe even in a past life. Maybe that’s what my dreams were. Past lives together. Darce could have had centuries to learn how to play my body so well.

When he curled his finger inside me and hit that special spot over and over, I began to convulse. I cried out as my orgasm rippled through my body, and when I did, Darce bit down gently on my sensitive bundle. He hummed in satisfaction, licking away any moisture from my sex.

“You taste the same,” he cooed, running his hands over my ass as he spoke. “It’s been so long, I could drown in your scent and die happy.”

“When you say it’s been a long time...do you mean centuries , or less?” When I wasn’t facing him, I could be bolder with my questions. I heard him sigh from behind me while he helped put my panties and leggings back on. I waited for his response.

“It’s been longer than centuries, Alora.” OH! “I’ve been waiting for you to wake up for a very long time. That is all I can admit right now.” Turning to look at his soft, sad smile, I slipped onto his lap. His arms encircled my waist instantly. “The more you remember, the harder it will be to keep you safe. Nyx is worried I’m putting us both in danger.”

“Did Nyx know me... before ?”

“Yes. It’s been hard for her. Nyx enjoys control, and she worries for me.” Why would Nyx worry?

“Is she a shadow wielder like you?”

“My kind all have different abilities.”

“How far do your abilities go?” I remembered from my dreams that Darce was a mere foot soldier. Were there others more powerful than him? There had to be. Was that what he was afraid of? Others, who were more powerful, might come after us? How would we defend ourselves?

“I can control darkness, Alora. That’s all you need to know right now.” When I nodded, he pulled me closer towards his chest. “It will all begin to fit in place soon. I promise. Shall we watch a Christmas movie? After that, I’ll take you to your last surprise.” I couldn't stay angry at that face. I pecked his lips softly in agreement. A distraction sounded like a good idea right now.