Page 31 of Deadly Little Games

I turned my head to meet those stunning gray eyes. “What will happen to you if I can’t?”

He met my eyes, but didn’t answer, because he could only speak the truth. And he knew if he did, that I wouldn’t want to say no.

With a new sense of resolve, I lifted my hands to cradle his chin, pulling him down on top of me. “Gabriel better keep themfaraway.” I kissed him, and this time with abandon.

He sank against me as I wrapped my legs around him, pressing my back into the damp grass. He kissed down my neck, and more power flared with every caress. It was easier this time, like it was waiting just below the surface.

Just like with Crispin—

I silenced my thoughts, not wanting to get distracted from our task, which became easy as Mistral reached a hand between us to unbutton my jeans. The tug at my waistband sent a tug even lower, pleasure already building even though all we had done was kiss.

“I do hate to rush,” he whispered against my skin, “but I can’t hold the land for much longer.”

If he thought he needed to apologize, he was wrong, because the idea of skipping frantically to the finale had its own appeal to me. He ground against me, and I could feel him hard and ready through his pants.

“Do what you need to do,” I panted.

The next thing I knew, he had flipped me over and pulled my jeans down from my ass. I felt him reaching into his pocket, then shifting to lower his pants with the crinkle of foil. I had a moment to remember that we were once again not alone, then Mistral slid inside me with a single thrust.

I let out a moan then cut myself off, glancing in Gabriel’s direction, but I could only see the silhouette of his back, and no sign of the goblins beyond. Mistral pulled almost out of me, then thrust again, slamming against my body.

The pleasure already building in my core exploded. I pushed my fingers through the grass, pressing my cheek against the damp blades, breathing in the heady scent of fertile soil. Magic built up in my chest as Mistral pounded against me, but I wasn’t sure what to do with it. This time, I had no need to be anywhere else.

He thrust harder, making me groan every time his body met mine, bringing me close to the edge. “How do I—”

He leaned his chest over my back, the change in angle making me gasp. “Just let go, Eva. Just let your magic go. I will guide it.”

Mistral ground himself into me, making my body tense around him, and suddenly all I could see were stars. But I didn’t go anywhere. I could still feel his hands on my hips. I could feel him thrusting into me, pressing my knees into the cold grass and soil, dampening my jeans still wrapped around my legs. I did as he asked, I relaxed into the sensations, loosening my grip on my magic, letting it flow around us.

And just like that, it poured into him. Even with my eyes closed and concentration, the starlight was almost blinding. An orgasm hit me, and with it I cried out and let loose my final shred of control. I could feel the spell he wove together, sending it into the earth, asserting dominance over all that wild magic.

But some of that magic refused to be tamed. And it called out not to him, but to me. I felt it gripping me. I tried to steady myself, but I was still seeing stars. I could sense the shift, but I couldn’t see any way to stop it.

And when I opened my eyes, I was entirely alone.

I sat bolt upright,looking around frantically. One of my feet had ended up in the water, soaking through my sneaker and chilling me further. I yanked it out of the stream with a hiss, and struggled to pull up and fasten my jeans. Once I was fully clothed, I glanced around warily. I had no idea where I’d ended up, but it stillfeltlike the Bogs.

Which was good and bad. Good, because maybe I wasn’t far from Gabriel and Mistral, but bad because things like trolls roamed the Bogs, and I was defenseless.

I had only taken a few steps when something splashed in the water behind me. I whirled around, lifting my hands defensively for what good it would do me, then blinked down at a stunningly gorgeous woman with green tinged skin so pale it picked up the moonlight. She smiled at me, showing perfect white teeth, no fangs.

“Um, hello,” I said hesitantly.

She rose further out of the water, revealing that she was nude, though it didn’t make me feel any better. I knew a goblin woman lurking in a stream waiting for an unsuspecting visitorwould not be defenseless. She tilted her head, splaying dark, wet locks across her shoulders. “Hello. Are you lost?”

I took another step away from the water. That was not a question you answered honestly in the Bogs. “Nope, just waiting for a couple of very powerful high goblins to meet me.”

She took another step, rising further to reveal her slender form. “I don’t see nor hear any goblins coming this way.” Her words held a distincthiss, her voice breathy.

I stepped back again, bumping against a tree. “Trust me, they’ll be here.”

I flinched at another splash as a second woman popped above the water’s surface. With her face dripping, she smiled at me, though her words were for her companion. “She shines like the moon, doesn’t she?”

The other woman tilted her head. “More like the stars. Where did you come from, little star?”

Her bare feet had reached the bank. I wasn’t sure how fast she could move on land, but I had no intention of finding out.

“I’ll just wait for my companions… somewhere else.” I stepped around the tree behind me, prepared to turn and run, but as soon as I turned my way was blocked.