Page 62 of Burn of Obsidian
Accepting the key card, Jax managed to get them both to the lift, his leg shaking beneath their combined weight. It would heal, just as he’d healed every wound before it. But it was going to be a pain in his arse if he didn’t tend to it soon. Shadow-Veyn damage took far longer than anything else to repair, and in normal circumstances, he’d be removed from rotation by Riley and forced to rest. But nothing about the situation was normal.
He knew Sythe would report back to Riley, and his brothers were already watching him too closely. His beast seemed to be walking on a knife’s edge, Jax’s control weakening. He hoped mating with Thea would appease his beast to some extent and strengthen their connection.
Entering the hotel room and kicking the door closed, he gently settled Thea onto her feet before heading to the bathroom for the first aid kit he knew every room provided. The Conservatory almost exclusively catered to the Undercity, so it wasn’t a surprise the complimentary amenities included top of the range medical supplies.
He came back to find her laying on the bed, her hands rubbing up and down against the expensive sheets. Jax sat beside her, unpacking the suture kit. Using a clean cloth, he washed around the wound, carefully tucking her hair out of the way. It splayed against the pale sheets, a burst of colour in a room of white, gold and cream.
Prepping the kit, he hoped whatever Faye had done was still working, because he couldn’t use any local anaesthetic. Fae reacted to certain medication, which meant he couldn’t risk it.
“Have you ever wanted to fly?” she asked, her expression soft when she turned to him.
Jax pursed his lips. “No.” Which was the truth. His mother hated his lack of wings, and in return Jax learnt to resent the idea of flight. He didn’t dream of soaring through the stars; he dreamt of falling. “Keep still.”
“Bossy.” Thea watched him through lowered lashes.
He was used to stitching up himself and his brothers, not an inebriated faerie with an actual pain threshold. She scowled at him at the first prick, but didn’t move an inch as he made quick work of closing the wounds.
“Grey’s dead,” she began. “It wasn’t like I knew knew him, but it’s still sad.”
Jax paused on his stitch.
“He was your date, you know,” she continued in her dreamy tone. “You two would have made a cute couple.”
“Keep still.”
“I can already imagine your kids.”
Returning to his work, Jax made sure to keep the lines clean, hoping she didn’t scar easily. Fae were a wide range of Breed, and each one varied greatly within their caste.
Thea’s attention burned across his face. “You know, you’re not as scary as you think.”
Jax cut the last thread before grabbing one of the larger adhesive dressings, draping it over her shoulder. “I broke Leighton’s hand.”
Thea blinked, the movement slow. “Why?”
“Because he touched you.” Grabbing the medical kit, he snapped it closed. “And because I could.”
He felt her eyes track him across the room, almost burning through his already tight skin.
“You need to get some sleep,” he said, the ache in his temple back full force.
MINE, Beast hummed with anticipation, ready to take over.
Clamping his hands on the vanity, Jax tried to centre himself. He’d never had to concentrate so hard for control.
The sound of a zipper snapped his head up, his entire body stiffening. He was unable to stop himself staring into the mirror, memorising every delicious curve of her body, naked but for his golden bands, and a thin, silver bracelet.
She met his eyes in the reflection, her breathing increasing at his unapologetic attention.
The wood beneath Jax’s hands creaked with how hard he gripped it. “Sleep.”
She hesitated, and his beast howled to take her, to mark her.
Not yet.
Not while she wasn’t in the moment with him.
“Sleep,” he repeated, his voice strained.