Page 68

Sav

I shook out my wrists, praying for a spark of fire. Nothing. Not even a flicker. That one bit of magic I’d used—wasted—on a polar bear…and Jack. Now I had nothing but a flicker of glamour and the guilt twisting my insides.

Nervous energy thrummed through me. This was a bad plan.

Something would go wrong. We wouldn’t get into the basement.

Juniper would be dead. Jack would be kidnapped.

We would all be taken prisoner and I’d be forced to watch my friends die slow, painful deaths.

Snap out of it, Sav, I commanded myself.

I’d always wanted to be one of those cup-half-full fae, but when it came down to it, that glass looked half empty to me.

A knock sounded at the door and a cold stone dropped in my stomach. One day someone would knock, and it wouldn’t fill me with dread. “Yes?”

“It’s time.”

I swallowed, pulling open the door and meeting Larek’s gaze. “Are you coming?”

He nodded and a wide grin broke over his face.

“Didn’t Dad tell you? I’m one of the six.

” Larek danced into the room spinning in a circle, pulling his hands, aimed like pistols, out of pockets.

Yolmar followed, doing a similar dance and the twins faked a draw, both aiming at one another and shooting.

Yolmar grabbed his chest, sinking to his knees and groaning.

A smile tugged at my lips as I fell into one of our old games—shoot first, ask questions never—and pulled out my own fake pistols.

Larek held up his scarred hands, thin white lines crisscrossing them. “You win. Don’t shoot.”

I dropped my gun, pouting. “No fair.” Just for a moment, their light moods had lifted some of my gloom, but even that small reprieve was out of my grasp.

Yolmar hopped up, tucking a braid behind his long, pointed ear, and spinning me around. “You’re the best. We wouldn’t stand a chance against you.” He leaned down several inches, whispering close to my ear. “Sometimes you gotta know when you’re beat.”

I grabbed his rough, calloused hands. “If it gets dangerous, promise me you’ll run.

I want to save them, but if it’s between you and the prisoners, save yourselves.

” I met each of their eyes. They were the little brothers I’d never had, even if they hadn’t been smaller than me in centuries, and if anything happened to them, I’d never forgive myself.

“Don’t worry, Sav.” Larek said, black eyes meeting mine.

“We’ll be fine against three puny humans,” Yolmar finished. “Come on. Dad’s waiting in the map room.”

I slid my arms between each of their bulky biceps, and we left my room. Trailing the long hall, a swath of raven curls rounded a corner ahead of us.

“Jack!”

He didn’t turn, didn’t acknowledge me and a stone settled in my stomach. His dark stare flashed in my mind and I squeezed the twin’s arms tighter.

“He’ll get over it.” Larek said beside me.

“Or we pummel him.” Yolmar finished.

I smiled weakly at them. If only everything could be solved with a bit of violence.

Stepping into the map room, I disentangled myself from the twins and moved to stand beside Creig.

He had dressed for battle, leather straps crossing his chest, a cape trailing over one shoulder.

Thick lines of white paint were slashed across his cheeks and a solid black line ran down his scarred forehead to the tip of his nose.

In this attire, he was a fearsome sight.

It was easy to imagine our enemies cowering before him as they had so many times at the borders of the spring court.

But a memory of the Gremlin who had fallen in Central Park crowded into my mind, and I exhaled a slow shaky breath.

Creig wasn’t like that creature. He wasn’t bound by ISHFA laws.

If Dane and his minions attacked, he would fight back.

I laid a hand on his much larger one, lacing my fingers through his.

He looked up, searching my face. “I’ll be alright, Love. We’ll get them out and get back here safely.”

I nodded, emotion swelling in my chest. I stepped forward, wrapping my arms around him. A tear slid down my cheek.

His big arms came around me, and my shoulders relaxed into his touch.

The past three years came rushing back, the hurt and rejection of my family.

The exile and binding of my magic. The utter loneliness I’d felt in the human world.

It pressed against me, weighing me down until I sank against him and let Creig take my burdens just for a moment.

Two enormous bodies crashed into my back, squeezing me against Creig, and I laughed as we stood in the middle of the room, pressed together in one big hug.

When Larek and Yolmar released me, I freed myself from Creig, wiping my cheeks. I searched each of their beautiful, expressive faces, memorizing them and promised myself it wouldn’t be another decade before I saw them again.

“No matter what else happens, promise me you’ll take care of yourselves.” I narrowed my eyes at Creig. “You especially. Nothing brave. If we can’t get them out, we’ll regroup here and come up with another plan.”

“I’ll make sure Dane is distracted.”

I jumped, twisting to stare at Jack, hovering in the doorway. He was dressed head to toe in black. A perfectly tailored button-down shirt, rolled up to his elbows and a thin leather belt at his waist lined in knives.

His hair was pulled back, showing off the strong line of his freshly shaved jaw and my gaze lingered on his lips.

They were set in that firm line he’d adopted since he learned of my deception, and when our eyes met, something jolted through me.

His burned with a new intensity I hadn’t seen before, and I shuddered.

That fire in his eyes—it wasn’t human. Not entirely.

And part of me wondered, hoped, that he wasn’t. Because if he wasn’t human…

“Jack.”

“Savage,” he said, moving into the room.

When he stopped on the other side of the table, as far from me as he could get, a chill settled over me.

Foxglove followed, standing beside him and they tipped their heads to the map together. When had they become such good friends?

“Jack. Can I talk to you?”

His gaze snapped to mine, dark and searching. Heat flooded my chest as goosebumps prickled my skin. He didn’t speak, just gave a sharp nod, excusing himself from the room, and I followed him out, my heart racing with every step.

In the hall, he spun on me, his jaw clenched tight, and for just a second, the mask he always wore slipped.

There, hidden beneath the anger simmering in his eyes, was something raw.

Hurt. The kind of hurt I knew too well. My heart splintered at the sight of it.

Instinctively, I raised my hand, running my fingertips along his cheek, searching for some connection.

He flinched under my touch, muscles taut, but he didn’t pull away.

“I’m sorry.”

The words hung in the air between us, heavy and unfinished. His eyes never left mine, as if waiting—begging—for something more.

“That’s it?” he asked, his voice rough.

I opened my mouth to respond, but nothing came. The words tangled in my throat. What could I possibly say that would fix this?

He took a step back, the distance between us widening as he shrugged away from my touch. “Unbelievable.”

“Wait.” The word escaped me before I could think, and Jack froze, his gaze snapping back to mine.

My lips parted, but I hesitated. The truth clawed its way up my throat. I should protect him. I should lie. But I was losing him, and I couldn’t—I couldn’t let him walk away. “Since we met, I’ve tried to see you as nothing more than a means to an end,” I forced out. “Because…”

His eyes, once again on mine, were unreadable.

“Because if I didn’t…” I inhaled sharply, my pulse a frantic beat beneath my skin. “If I didn’t, I’d have to admit you mean something more.” My voice trembled. “That you’ve become…a friend.”

The air between us changed, the charged tension evaporating into something cold. Hard. Jack’s eyes darkened, fury flickering in their depths.

“Friends.” The word landed like a slap. He stepped closer, his breath a heated whisper against my skin. “I’ve never wanted to be your friend, Sav.”

My breath hitched. Heat radiated from him, burning every inch of my skin. He was so close, and yet not close enough. His hand slid down the wall beside me, caging me in, and my pulse thundered in my ears.

“I’ve wanted so many things from you,” Jack said, voice low and rough, his eyes tracing the shape of my lips.

“So many things.” His gaze flicked back to mine, searing me alive.

“I’ve wanted to taste you. To feel your body against mine.

” His breath ghosted over my mouth, making me shudder.

“I’ve wanted you to take all this tension between us and finally do something about it. ”

A nervous laugh escaped me and my lips touched his. A spark ignited low in my belly, and I pressed my head back against the wall, fighting the pull. “I…can’t. I can’t,” I whispered, though every fiber of my being screamed to say the opposite.

Jack’s hand hovered an inch from my face, his fingers trembling. “May I touch you?”

My heart hammered against my ribs, threatening to break free. I should say no. I should—

“Yes.”

His finger brushed my cheek, gentle as a whisper, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

He didn’t stop there, though. His touch continued, tracing the line of my jaw, the curve of my neck, down to my collarbone, leaving a trail of heat in its wake.

My breath hitched, and the fire he stoked within me burned hotter, fiercer, until I was set ablaze with it.

I could hear his heart pounding, matching mine, and for a moment, all I wanted was to close the gap between us. To give in to the longing, the need that had been building for so long. But fear held me still. Fear of what would happen if I let go. Fear of what it would mean for both of us.

“Do you know what I want most of all?”

“What?” I breathed.

“Your heart.”

The second the words left his mouth, I was lost. I surged forward, capturing his lips with mine.

His arms wrapped around me, his grip unyielding, as he kissed me back, hard and desperate. His fingers tangled in my hair, tugging just enough to make me gasp, and I tasted the wintergreen on his breath—cool and intoxicating.

This was Jack. And I was falling. Falling too fast, too far, with no way to stop.

His kiss devoured me, swallowing me whole.

I was a storm of desire and need and he was the lightning setting my very being on fire.

His hand slipped to my neck, cupping my head gently and my body melted into his, as his other hand traced the line of my back, wrapping around my waist. A swell of emotion rose in me as his warmth bled over my skin, feeding a fire I’d waited my whole life to feel.

When he released me, my head fell back into his cradling hand and stars danced at the edges of my vision. Every fiber of my being radiated heat as I looked up into those bright, shimmering green eyes.

A soft smile played at the edges of his mouth, and warmth evaporated from my neck as he released my head, tucking a curl behind my ear.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a long time,” he said, leaning back.

I went with him, loath to leave the comfort of his warmth.

His arm tightened around me and his gaze devoured me almost as hungrily as his mouth had.

A throat cleared. I froze. Jack didn’t. His hand lingered on my waist, hot and unrepentant.

I spun to face Foxglove, heat creeping onto my cheeks.

Jack’s warmth radiated along my back.

Foxglove’s gaze dipped to my swollen lips, then trailed up over my shoulder.

I didn’t turn, didn’t want to know what he saw on Jack’s face. I had let my selfish feelings get the better of me and the truth of those feelings was painted on my face. I’d had one chance to set Jack free—to keep him safe—and I hadn’t taken it.