The ride back to the mansion had been wrapped in uncomfortable silence. I could see the tension and anger riding inside Ryder"s golden eyes. Adam and Larissa held onto each other as if at any moment the sky would fall. Adrian had demanded to come back with us but Ryder had stepped in and thankfully stopped it from happening.
I wasn"t processing it, my mind was shutting down and exhaustion was settling over me from the day"s events. I stayed long enough to ensure the child had been put under by Ryder and whatever it was he did that made it so you could nothing else but pa.s.s out cold.
I needed to figure out what he said and what language it was so I could use that instead of the sleeping pills I"d been taking since I was a child to escape the nightmares. I made it all the way to my room and had enough time to change out of the skin tight vinyl outfit and into some boy-cut undies before the door was opened and Ryder walked in with his usual confidence firmly in place.
"We need to talk Synthia," he said closing the door and settling into the single chair.
"I"m tired. Can we do it in the morning?" I asked, hoping he would say yes.
"What are you?" He came straight to the point, ignoring the fact that I was in my undies and topless with only my arms s.h.i.+elding him from my naked b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
"I"m tired and mentally fried Ryder. And at the moment I"m half-naked, so either turn around, or get out of the room so I can get dressed."
His self-absorbed smile spread over his mouth. "I own you and I don"t mind at all."
I ignored him, spinning around so he couldn"t see anything as I slipped into the tank top and turned back around. "You don"t actually own me Ryder, and the contract didn"t include late night visits to my room. I have no idea what she was talking about, or what they think I am. As far as I know I"m a Witch, I can"t do anything that I haven"t read or learned from the Guild, or a book."
And I had read a lot, I loved books.
"Indeed," he mused as I walked over to the bed and plopped myself down in front of him folding my legs Indian style facing him.
"What else do you want to know?" I was giving him honest answers. He looked young and yet he was ageless because he was Fae. I knew he was older than our records said, they had him being only a few years older than me, but his eyes told another story with their endless depths of knowledge. I was pretty sure he had to know more than I had learned in my entire twenty one years.
"How old are you?" He continued.
"Twenty one years old. Going on one hundred."
He smiled but it was all teeth, "Funny girl."
"The child said they were coming for you. Any ideas on who it is, or why?" He asked watching my face for a reaction.
"They"ve never tried before. I don"t see why they would now."
"Fair enough, I need to examine the brand on your neck Syn. May I?" He asked cautiously, as if he was afraid I would say no.
"Why?" I asked just as prudently as he had.
"Because it doesn"t protect you from me fully and I am pretty sure if I had one of my men come in, it wouldn"t work against them either. You have a natural immunity to the Fae, but I want to test it to see how just resistant you are. I can make you feel things, but you don"t turn completely mindless from my touch."
"Fine, but no funny business," I swallowed. I was pretty sure I"d been both mindless and boneless in his room.
His lips quirked as he stood up and moved closer. "I need you to lie on your stomach and hit your on switch."
I hesitated as he got closer, my courage breaking away. I shook my head as I scooted further onto the bed to give him some room and lay down on my stomach slowly. "No funny business." I turned meeting his eyes briefly.
Those eyes filled with molten heat as they lowered to meet mine. I turned my head back around and dropped it to the bed wondering what the h.e.l.l I"d just gotten myself into. I had gone from trained killer to blus.h.i.+ng b.u.mbler since meeting Ryder and it was p.i.s.sing me off.
I felt the bed move under his weight and hissed as his fingers swept my hair away from the brand. I stretched my neck wondering why he would think it wasn"t working. I"d never had any issue with the Fae, until him.
"When did you get this?" His voice resonated from above my head as his hot breath fanned my against my neck sending heat pooling between my thighs.
"Around thirteen."
"Any idea what it says?" His voice was hoa.r.s.e and not helping the fight the d.a.m.n b.u.t.terflies were having inside my abdomen.
"No, only that it is supposed to protect against the influence of the Fae."
"I can"t read it," he said as though he was confounded.
"But?" I"d heard the "but" in his tone.
"It"s old, the branding is. This isn"t from the Guild."
"Of course it is. I don"t let just anyone write brands on my skin Ryder. And every brand is supervised by Alden to ensure it is correct."
He didn"t reply, instead his fingers traced over the invisible ink that he shouldn"t be able to see at all and he hadn"t asked me to turn the ink on for color, which meant he could see it plainly. "You can read it as is."
"Only this one, the others are undetectable unless you allow them to be seen. I"m going to take a gander that it was intended to be that way deliberately."
I turned over until I was lying on my back and looking up into his eyes. He didn"t push the answer out. Instead he waited for me to decide how much I wanted to tell him about it. I inhaled his scent and let it rush through me relaxing the tension the day had caused on my nerves. "The brands with the exception of the one on my neck were placed on me with ink designed by Alden. It"s enchanted to react with our powers. It"s supposed to keep us grounded from the lure of the Dark Arts. Since we only just started messing with them a few years ago he decided to use us."
I watched his mind run through the implications, the knowledge sinking in that I hadn"t been branded by normal ink ever. He lifted his eyes and scanned my face before saying anything. "You didn"t have ink before thirteen? I thought all the Witches receive ink before then...So you had nothing but the stars?"
I flinched remembering why I had them. They were for my parents, one for each with traditional black ink defining the burns into the true stars on the front of my shoulders. "Correct, I didn"t need any ink at first and then we received the white ink."
"Can I try something without you freaking out Synthia?" He asked watching my face.
"Do I have to be naked for it?" I countered narrowing my eyes watching his mouth turn up into a beautiful mischievous smile.
"No, but I have to touch you. I want to see if the brands protect you from me when activated. Or if it affects me at all."
I swallowed past the uneasiness that flared to life inside my stomach with his words. "You want me to invoke my powers while you try to use yours on me. What if we end up forgetting who we are like we did last time?"
"I didn"t forget who I was Syn. I knew exactly who I was and who I was with when I lost control."
My body responded to his words, even as my breathing grew labored. "I can"t be with you Ryder, it"s not allowed while I work for the Guild."
"To have s.e.x?" He asked narrowing his eyes again.
"No, I can have s.e.x. Lots of s.e.x, with lots of people. Just not of the Fae variety. I"m not sure I could ever be with any Fae. Besides, what if something happened and I got pregnant? I mean, the Guild has us on mandatory contraceptives designed for us, but something could always happen and none of the Fae accepts Changelings not to mention-I wouldn"t wish me as a mother for any child." I was rambling so I stopped when he noticed.
He smiled forlornly, "The Horde does," he answered flas.h.i.+ng his smile back to full force.
"Yeah but their King is missing and unless I"m mistaken the Vampires are changing sides already. Your side to be precise, which means he"s either gone or he"s in play."
I watched his face shut down going completely emotionless. "You watch too many conspiracy movies Synthia."
"Be that as it may, Vlad called you Sire tonight Ryder."
"I"m a Prince, besides, I"m higher on the food chain than he is and I"ve earned their respect."
I tilted my head and considered it. It could have been, or it could have been that Vlad was leaderless and seeking out a new alliance and Ryder being Dark Fae would be the closest to the Horde. Unlike the Light Fae, the Dark Fae got along with the Horde. "Could have been, yes."
"I have no plans of making any new alliances."
I nodded and then shrank back as his hand came out to rub against my palm sending a tremble through my entire body. His thumb traced over the small scar on the palm of my hand softly.
"How easily can you summon your powers Synthia?" He inquired never taking his eyes from mine. I should be running from him instead of indulging him.
I didn"t answer him, instead I invoked them and watched the white glow light up in his eyes. His smile faltered as he moved closer, lying down lengthwise beside me until our faces were inches apart. He was the most s.e.xual male I had ever encountered in my life. He oozed power from his pores. I shouldn"t trust him. And yet I trusted him more than I thought I did.
"Your eyes don"t match when they light up," he whispered resting his head in his hand while his elbow sat on the bed.
"So I"ve been told," I whispered fighting to keep my voice from trembling. His close proximity was playing h.e.l.l on my hormones. My hand shook where his thumb still played over the sensitive flesh, which was weakening my willpower with every slow stroke.
"You ready Pet?" He inquired looking a little too eager.
"For your little science project?" I asked making sure we were on the same page.
He grinned wolfishly before he leaned over close enough that I could smell the mint on his breath, as if he had come here planning on kissing me. "Something like that, I need to see how this thing works. I know it doesn"t work against me completely, but we need to test it."
If I"d been using my brain I might have asked why, but Mister s.e.x Incarnate was inches from my lips and the only thing I could think of was what he had been doing to Claire in his office and how I had wanted to trade places with her, which was crazy.
When his mouth found mine it wasn"t a crus.h.i.+ng kiss, or hard. Instead it was tender and firm as he tested me. When he touched me it was electrical, like standing next to a live wire while sparks flew from it to land on you and yet you were trapped in place by its beauty. That was the only way to describe his touch and kiss. It scared me. It was intense-more than I had ever felt with Adrian.
I knew the instant he pushed his Fae powers on me. Everything else faded away and my only need was to take him. "Ryder," I said with my voice filled of need.
"Do you want me to stop?" He asked pulling further away as he pulled the magic with him.
I swallowed but pulled him back down. "Did you get what you needed, for the science thing?"
His eyes lit up and he shook his head as more Fae magic pushed into my mind. It was painful at first but gone instantly when his lips caressed mine. I moaned and pushed against his mouth with need for him, hot and fierce, that I was afraid I"d be left in a pile of ash if he didn"t continue and give me more of him. When he pulled away I cried from the loss. "Ryder."
"What"s your name?" He demanded in fiery voice filled with l.u.s.t.
"Syn. Now shut up and kiss me Ryder."
His lips tugged in the corner before he kissed me again, more demanding this time, his hand cradling my neck as he moved over the top of me and ground his erection against my pelvis. More power filtered in and he kept asking my name or other questions as I answered and demanded more of him.
My body was an inferno, my center saturated with the proof of his s.e.xual allure and power he held inside of himself. My body willing, my mind was still intact enough that I knew who I was and where I was. I shook with it, my hands found his head and pulled him back down as his knee slid between my legs and pressed against my core.
"Do you want me to stop? I need to know, because if we go too much further Pet, I"m going to bury myself deep inside of you." He asked pulling away from the kiss.
"I..." I didn"t know, for the first time in my life I wanted to tell a Fae yes, that I wanted him. And only him.
"I want to feed from you so f.u.c.king badly, Syn. I need to part your legs drive my c.o.c.k inside of you, I want to see you as you come on my c.o.c.k."
His words penetrated my brain like a knife through an eye socket. "No, Ryder I can"t."
"Can"t, or won"t Syn?" He growled in frustration.
I was about to answer when a soft knock sounded from the door. Ryder was up and fixing his erection against his jeans before I could say anything else. My eyes latched on to it as it stood proudly against his navel. I licked my lips wanting to ask him to stay, but not knowing how to. I knew where he"d go after this. I could see his hunger burning in his eyes.
"You keep saying you can"t and it"s a lie. You won"t. You hide in the f.u.c.king past. You"re not living Syn, you"re just going through the motions of it. You want me, I can smell it-you need it as much as I do right now. The difference is, I can admit to what I want-you can"t."
I gulped in air and fought for something to say while he waited, watching me struggle internally. He snorted and turned for the door. "Wait, Ryder I-"
"Save it," he interjected cutting me off. "I own you Syn, so know this. While you"re under my roof and my protection, the only release you will get, is from me. Not by your hand or another"s, when you can grow the f.u.c.k up and admit to me what your body already knows-well you know where to find me."
I watched him turn and walk out of the room as Larissa and Adam walked in wide eyed.
"Oh h.e.l.l Syn, your lips are kiss-me-silly swollen," Larissa said with wide shocked eyes.
"She"s more than that baby," Adam responded when I couldn"t find the words. He was holding her hand and I wanted to cry. I"d never have that again, the love they felt for one another. It would be forever beyond my grasp.
"So, what"s up with you and Ryder anyways?" Larissa asked floating in to sit on the bed while she dragged Adam with her.
"Nothing," I lied and felt a pinch of regret for doing so. "I"m immune to him apparently, well mostly. He can"t turn me into a mindless zombie, but I do feel his powers, just not on a level I should."
"That mother f.u.c.ker tried to turn you FIZ? I"ll f.u.c.king kill him!" Adam was enraged and off the bed in seconds taking long strides to the door.
"I asked him to, well sorta." I said quickly to stop Adam from getting his a.s.s handed to him, which I was pretty sure Ryder would do right now if disturbed with Claire and his d.a.m.n desk.
"Wait, wait a minute. You hate the Fae. What the h.e.l.l is wrong with you?" Adam demanded coming back over to sit on the bed beside Larissa.
I blew out a deep breath, "This brand on my neck, it"s not for the Fae Adam. Ryder doesn"t know what it says and I"m pretty sure he"s older than dirt."
Adam narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "What do you mean it"s not for the Fae, what the h.e.l.l did t.i.tus put on your neck?"
"No idea, but we need to figure it out-and soon." I replied shaking my head.
I tried to remember what t.i.tus had said while tattooing the ink and gave up. I licked my lips nervously and spoke low so only those inside the room could hear me. "I have no birth certificate according to Ryder, you don"t either Adam. There are no pictures of me inside my parent"s house before I was six months old."
"I was left at the Guild so no surprise there, but there has to be some pictures of you as an infant-well unless you were an ugly baby."
I snorted at his response since it pretty much matched the one I had given to Ryder. I considered my option and then turned to look at Larissa. "If Adam cut it off, you could heal it right?"
"Oh h.e.l.l no! We cannot just cut it off Syn, have you lost your mind?" Larissa said turning a light color of green.
I rubbed my eyes, tired from everything I had dealt with today. "Adrian is alive," I mumbled knowing that was what they had come in here for.
"Technically he"s-Ow!" Adam whined and rubbed his ribs where Larissa had just elbowed him. I barely contained a smile as he continued to do so.
"I know, how could he do that to us? I mean, he actually got turned into a Vampire I can"t believe it! And he was all over you. He thinks he can come back in here after we buried him? Seriously, the guy is going to send my a.s.s to counseling!" She shouted in her best outraged voice for my benefit.
"If you want I can grab my notebook and a pen and you can lie on the couch?" I teased her.
Adam laughed and lifted his green eyes up to meet mine. He wasn"t fooled by the jokes I was using to deflect the conversation at all. "He doesn"t deserve you, he left us. All of us, he left the coven to become more powerful Syn."