Page 36 of The Powerless Witch

“What—” I started, hoping to get this conversation over with so I could go back to my gazing, when he whirled around and glared at me. The vicious expression startled me enough to trail off, and the way his hands balled into fists at his sides made me reach for the blade I had concealed in my jacket.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” he snarled and I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose as his voice rose with every next word. “I thought you were healed! Why the hell would you not tell me you can’t use your magic? And what in the world made you think making a bargain with the Fae is a good idea? And don’t even get me started on stripping naked in front of men like you don’t—”

I yanked the door open and pointed at the corridor.

“Get out,” I said, giving him a warning look. “I’m not listening to this right now.”

I waited for him to leave, but instead, he stopped next to me, putting his giant palm on the wood and slamming it shut. His eyes never left mine.

“I told you. I’m not going anywhere. Now more than ever you need my protection, you stupid woman, because you can’t even defend yourself!” he snarled, eyes flashing golden. “I’m your mate, for fuck’s sake! You can’t shut me out! I need to knoweverything if I am to keep you safe! If there is anything else you haven’t told me, now’s the time, Celeste!”

I gritted my teeth in annoyance, the magic within me sizzling with nowhere to go. A dull ache spread in the middle of my chest, but I ignored it.

“Get over yourself, puppy. Just because you bit me doesn’t make you my master. I will tell you whatever I want, whenever I want,” I snarled. “But if you must know, yes, I cannot use my magic and yes, I’m no stronger than a human, but make no mistake. I am neither weak nor powerless! I do not need your protection! The only thing I need from you is your body because my goddamn magic is unstable, and the only way to keep it from exploding and killing me is by keeping me calm and satisfied. Happy now?”

He blinked, confusion passing over his face, then he sucked in a sharp breath.

“So last night was just you using me?” he asked quietly, and the aching disappointment that rocked the bond made my chest hurt in an entirely different way. I ignored it, but I couldn’t bring myself to refute him. I tried to open the door and leave myself since it looked like he had no intention to, but he slammed it shut again. I would have given my soul all over again just to toss him across the room and hang him from the ceiling for good measure.

“I swear, you stupid puppy, if you don’t leave—”

“No,” Isaac said, and despite the anger in his voice, his tone was calm when he leaned closer. “I’m notpuppy. I’m notwolf. I’m not some randomguyto you. You will call me by my name or if you want to, you can call me ‘mate’ so you remind yourself that this is not going away. We are bonded, Celeste, and nothing will change that. So if you must use me, use me, but don’t lie by saying it meant nothing. I’m in your head. I can feel what you feel and I can hear what you think, and that night, you gave yourself willingly to me, not for some magic or out of fear but because you wanted it. I might be conflicted, but at least I can be honest with myself. Is it so hard to admit you have feelings? Is it so bad to accept that people want more from you than just your body and your power? Because I do. Goddess burn me, I fucking do.”

He was panting by the time the last word left his mouth and the emotions passing through the bond were so overwhelming that I swayed, leaning on the door. Longing, desperation, desire, hope. It was too much, too fast, and too deep, and it fueled the storm inside me to the point I couldn’t breathe.

How was I supposed to stay calm when he was bombarding me with all those emotions?

“Celeste?” his voice was gentle this time and when I didn’t answer, his hands slid to my shoulders, shaking me weakly. I was ready to snap at him, but the worry I saw in his eyes made the words sink back down. “What’s wrong? I can feel something’s wrong.”

Taking a deep breath, I pushed myself off the door. I wasn’t planning on doing it again so soon, but it was his fault, so he ought to take responsibility. He could make whatever conclusions he wanted.

“I’m in pain,” I said, and he flinched as if he was the one feeling it. “Fix it.”

“How?” he asked, digging his fingers into my shoulders. I almost rolled my eyes. I had just given him the answer a minute ago. Was he even listening?

Grabbing his shirt, I pulled him closer, pressing my mouth to his. When he froze, I ran my tongue over his lips and he finally parted them, allowing me to deepen the kiss. A moment later, his hand was sliding into my hair, his other arm pressing me against him until I could feel every hard muscle of his going taut with excitement. He picked me up, and we were moving toward the bed, I presumed, but instead of the soft touch of the silky sheets, my back hit something hard.

Then an ear-splitting crash made me jump just as Isaac tore himself away from me and roared. The sound of beating wings and inhuman screeching filled the room, and I looked up just as a flock of black birds burst through the window. Isaac charged them, his speed taking him across the chamber so fast that he barely reined in his inertia before he hit the wall. Planting his palms on the stone, he spun around and snarled just as the birds assembled behind him, feathers and beaks and eyes melting together until a single form remained.

The creature was taller than Isaac, haggard and thin, with patchy, pitch-black skin clinging to bones that distantly resembled a human. Yet the curved beak, the giant leathery wings, and the long talons on its fingers distinguished it as anything but.

“Oh, shit!” I gasped, scrambling to my feet as I realized what it was. “Get away from it!”

The Fae’s head snapped toward me, a few strands of limp black hair falling in front of its face. Recognition flickered in its eyes and it bared its pointed teeth at me from behind a beak-like mouth.

I hadn’t seen one of those in a very long time, but they still creeped me out more than most monsters that roamed the earth. And the hunger in this one, the pure determination as it took a step in my direction, made me miss my magic more than anything.

The Fae took all but two steps when Isaac tackled it from the side. The two rolled to the wall, talons and claws scratching and shredding, before the Fae flapped its wings open, sending Isaac flying across the room. With a speed and grace that was distinctly inhuman, the Fae got up and strode after him.

Isaac was already on his hands and knees, preparing to charge while his muscles bulged and pulled on his clothes as if he were about to shift. In one stride, the Fae was walking toward him, and in the next, its body exploded in a cloud of birds that flew chaotically through the room. Isaac’s eyes darted to each one, frustration battling on his face as he tried to pick a target.

It was going to be too late. He wouldn’t be fast enough.

I finally remembered how to move when the feathered creatures began to gather around like coins pulled toward a magnet. I drew my knife out and ran, praying that my stupid human legs would make it in time.

Isaac’s eyes snapped to me, then he seemed to notice my attention was on the Fae materializing behind him. He moved so fast that I barely saw him rise. Still, my distraction had done exactly what I hoped it would—creating a space between the wolf and the Fae.

I slipped between them just as the Fae took solid form, thrusting a hand toward Isaac’s chest. The long, curved claws shimmered, turning incorporeal as they sank into my body that now stood in its way. It was a strange sensation, having someone’s entire hand in my sternum without the pain of my flesh tearing, without the fear of death approaching. But it was not death this monster wanted, it was eternity.