"You're beautiful," he murmured against my lips. "When I first saw you, I thought you were trying to disguise your beauty with the rough clothing. Trying to blend in with your surroundings. It seemed so daft. A creature like you was not made to fit in, you were made to stand out. To draw notice. Your angelic face, your easy confidence, your incredible magic - you are one in a million and it pains me that you have to be hidden away from admiring eyes."
My body felt as light as air. I hadn't thought my heart could swell any more, but he'd just proven me wrong.
Holy shit, this was really good. I liked the first book just fine, but this one kinda blew it out of the water and I can't wait to find out what happens next. This one didn't get dragged down by the enormous amounts of new information like the first one did. Now don't get me wrong, it was necessary info for the first book. And I much prefer to have a detailed description when walking into a new world, with new myths and powers and characters. There is nothing worse than starting a new series with new words and terms and then absolutely no expansion or explanation. So while this book had a nice little recap to refresh the situation, the people, and their circumstances, the pace of the story didn't suffer from any info dumping.
And the story, well I gotta say, I liked everything about it. I still love Alexis and her kids. Alexis is learning more about herself and her powers and her relationship with Kieran is heating up. Daisy is still a smartass and Mordecai is still the voice of reason, but both are learning and evolving. We see a different side from Kieran and it doesn't detract from what we already know about him. He's evolving too, learning to balance power and compassion. Kieran's Six are becoming more fleshed out and I like where it's going. In fact, I seriously hope maybe they will get their own stories down the road. But I think my favorite addition to the story was Bria. She cracked me up and I like her role in the whole thing. Things are definitely about to speed up and I'm looking forward to see if it all comes to a head in the next book.
I admittedly went a bit overboard with my updates with this one, but that tends to happen when I'm really into the story I'm reading. That said, I'll probably go overboard on how many scenes I add below too, so…fair warning and/or spoilers:
"Daisy, give him a break." I said, moving to the paper bags. "He's my new boss, and he brought us groceries."
"Since when does the boss do manual labor?" Daisy asked, piling on the attitude. She wasn't the passive-aggressive type - when she was annoyed, she wanted everyone to know it.
"What can I tell ye? I couldn't pass up such a glowing welcome." Kieran smiled as he reached into one of the bags and pulled out a white paper bundle.
She sniffed. "Since when do you have an accent?"
"Daisy, seriously, give it a rest." I took out ingredients and set them on the counter. "He's here, this is happening, so let's be civil."
Daisy flung out a hand. "I'm just a little concerned, is all. He has stalked you most of the time he's known you, he's manipulated you into working for him, and now he's here, in your home, probably trying to get in your pants. He's getting too close, Lexi. You need protection from yourself."
"I'm in earshot," Kieran murmured tiredly, though not in anger. "In case you hadn't noticed…"
"She has a point," Mordecai said as he carried in two glasses and set them next to the sink. A waft of funk slapped me in the face. "Every time he comes around, he seems to want something."
"A big guy in a small kitchen," Kieran mumbled. "Hard to miss."
"Right now he probably wants you to take a shower." I waved my hand in front of my nose. "Mordie, you need deodorant."
"He's trying to cut corners and save some money." Daisy rolled her eyes. "I told him to spend the few dollars, but apparently his stink doesn't offend him like it offends everyone else."
"It's natural." Mordecai replied.
"So are farts, but you don't see people rejoicing when those waft around," Daisy said. "His feet, too, Lexi. My whole room reeks."
"Our room." Mordecai left the kitchen, bending to grab a sweatshirt before disappearing from sight.
"It won't be yours if you keep up this stink," Daisy called after him. "We'll get a dog house and put you outside."
"Low blow," I heard from the back bedroom.
"I didn't mean because you're a wolf-" The door slammed, cutting Daisy off. "You're more sensitive than a chick," she yelled.
The door opened. "Anyone is more sensitive than you. Rocks are more than you. You're a hard-hearted old cow!" The door slammed again.
I pointed at Kieran, who was shrugging out of his suit jacket with a mouth-watering grin.
"Did you say you wanted to go out to eat?" I asked. "Because if so, I'm in. Or how about Guinness for dinner? It's super filling. Any takers on leaving them here and heading down to the pub?"
~
Kieran was facing me, his pants tented by his massive erection. His black hair stood up at odd angles, like he'd just run his hands through it in frustration.
"Sorry about…" He didn't gesture, but I knew he was talking about putting distance between us right before I got to where I was going. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "I didn't think you'd want your wards walking in on that." He paused, and a smile ghosted his lips. "I also didn't want to get kicked out by a couple of teenagers."
I forced out a breath, sagging against the table. He had a point. I would have been mortified if the kids had seen me like that, for so many reasons. His presence of mind was impressive. I'd barely registered Mordecai coming out of his room.
"They'll each need their own bedrooms, though," he went on, before reaching down and adjusting himself.
My gaze snagged on the motion, and fantasies of replacing his touch with mine brought my blood back to boiling. I wiped my forehead of moisture.
"He's a healthy teenage boy now. He'll need some privacy," Kieran said, leaning back.
"They're well used to changing in the bathroom," I said, returning to the potatoes. "They think of each other as siblings -there's no cause for alarm"
"You're not hearing what I'm saying." He stepped closer to the table. "I'm not sure how it is for girls, but for boys, he's at the age where his dick will be his favorite pastime. He'll be dreaming about girls while-"
"Ew, okay." I held up my hands to stop the words. "Got it. I know what you mean now. All clear."
"He needs his own room."
"I've already had the talk with him. He knows to deal with that stuff in the bathroom. Or shower. Or he can clean out the back shed and have his own personal wank shack. Whatever. He knows I won't pass judgment as long as he keeps it out of their shared room."
He shook his head before turning back to the counter. "That's an incredibly awkward conversation. How'd he take it?"
"It's only awkward if you're being awkward about it. It's a natural human situation. It's not a big deal."
"It will be if he doesn't think anyone is home, wants the comfort of his bed, and Daisy walks in on him. That won't be a good scene. Or if he thinks she's asleep and-"
"Okay, okay. Jesus, how often did you play whack-a-mole with yourself?"
"All the time. That's what I'm saying."
I pushed off of the chair and looked out into the connected family room, something I should've done before proceeding with this conversation. Thankfully, Mordecai was lightly snoring on the couch and Daisy was probably doing the same in my room.
"Well…I can move Daisy into my room permanently, I guess. But then I'll have to use the bathroom…"
Kieran stilled, his whole body going stiff. "What do you use? Your fingers, or a vibrator?"
I slid my forearm across my forehead, my body pounding again.
"None of your business," I forced out, my throat tight.
"Can I watch?" He glanced back, his tone teasing but his eyes on fire. "You can use both methods, and then compare them with my cock. See which one gets you off the best."
"Vibrator, easy." I cleared my throat. "It's got all the bells and whistles. Men just aren't equipped to compete."
"I'm not a man." His voice was deep and rich. "I'm a god."
~
I left him standing there, a powerful, strong man - a prince of the magical world - in my tiny, run-down kitchen, nearly brought to his knees by the passing of his mother. The image crawled into my heart and settled, bringing tears to my eyes. He did share some of his father's traits - he was possessive, demanding, and downright terrifying. But he also had so much of his mother, like compassion morality, and a beautiful soul.
Unlike his father, he didn't love himself above all others. If I'd ever doubted, I now saw the proof before my eyes. He would sacrifice his wellbeing to bring peace to his mother. He would let go of the hope of his own throne to make sure she found her permanent resting place.
He would go to war with a more powerful foe to bring her justice.
~
"I got hit, then quit." I leaned back. "What he wrote on the note is what he said to his mother when she left my bedroom. To him, it's over. He doesn't want me near the job, he doesn't want me going after the spirit trapper, and he doesn't want me in his life at all. He'll pay me, but that's it. You guys got your wish.
My throat burned and my chest felt tight. The weird new feeling in my middle started aching. I swallowed down the emotion, but before I could say anything else, Daisy slammed her hand down on the table.
"That's bullshit! No way. Am I right, Mordecai? He can't just" - she swung her hand over the table - "waltz in here, mess with her mind, and then take off. That's fucked up." She put her finger in the air and looked at me with raised eyebrows. "I know the new rule is no swearing-"
"That's always been the rule-"
"-but this warrants it. He stalks you, gets his mom freed, gets some punani, and then he walks?" She stood from the table and paced the kitchen floor, acting the part of the scorned woman on my behalf. "He needs his dick cut off, that's what he needs."
A smile emerged on Bria's face as she watched Daisy. "This kid is my spirit animal."
~
"Thank you for helping me, Alexis. Thank you for…everything."
She nodded, but didn't speak.
He wasn't sure what else to say. "I'm just going to sit here for awhile.…"
She nodded again, but didn't get up.
"What makes you think that I'm going to do anything you say?" she said finally.
"This isn't up for discussion-"
She surged up from the bench and spun toward him, her face flushed and eyes shooting fire.
"I love taking handouts, don't get me wrong," she started, and he couldn't help a smile. "But if you think I'm going to let you walk into danger all by yourself, after everything you've done for me and my family, you've got a screw loose. I'm in this now, Kieran. I might not know what the hell I'm doing, and I might not be an incredible asset like the others, but I'm really good at plucking souls out of dead bodies. And I'm excellent at banishing souls. And…communicating with them. And that's something."
She balled her fists and dug in her heels. "Don't waste my heart on you? Fine. I won't. But I also won't waste my life hiding from a fight because it might not go my way. I've lived in that dual-society hellhole all my life. If anyone should fight for the people in the magical government not to be such turds, it's me. I have a score to settle, too. Someone has to get Valens back for treating spirits badly. For killing fairies and illegal game. I mean, fuck that guy! So screw you. I'm joining this fight. I'm joining the ranks. There's nothing you can do to stop me. Besides kill me, and I'll haunt the shit out of you."
He surged up before he knew what he was doing. He'd wanted to do what his mother had said. To do the right thing. He'd tried. But if the woman wouldn't go…
He grabbed her neck and reeled her in, crashing his lips to hers and kissing her for all he was worth.