saved me.”
“Doesn’t matter. As I always tell
you, I’d do it anytime.”
I watched as the boat pulled
near the shore. “Our ride is here.”
He leaned in. “Trust no one.”
“I was going to tell you the
same thing,” I whispered back.
“We need to get to Mount
Majest either way.”
“Once again, I was going to say
the same thing.” We were definitely
on the same page.
“Finally get free, bird?” Hugh
called from the deck of the boat.
“Hugh?” I spun around and
looked up at him.
“It’s me in the flesh. Miss me?”
He smirked.
“Not really, but thanks for
getting the boat.” I looked at the
nearly forty-foot wooden yacht.
“No problem. Glad I could be of
service, but I’m waiting for your
usual question.”
It took me a moment to follow
his train of thought. “I was hoping
you didn’t have to steal vehicles
here.”
“Not steal, borrow.”
“Great.” Even in the Glamour
Realm I couldn’t avoid feeling like a
criminal.
“Come aboard,” he called. “I
promise you’re going to like it.”
“It doesn’t really matter whether
I like it or not. We need the ride.”
“Testy, testy.” He grinned.
“Need help getting on?”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Owen wrapped his arms around me
and flew us over onto the deck.
“Showing off?” Hugh rested his
hand on the wheel.
“More like saving Daisy the
energy. She’s had a busy few days.”
“So have you.” He smirked. “So
tell me, did you get out on your
own, or did Violet save you?” He
spun the wheel and pushed the
throttle forward. The engine roared
to life.
Owen shrugged. “Violet helped.”
Hugh nodded. “I’m impressed
you’ll admit it.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Owen kept his
arms around me. “I have nothing to
prove.”
“Or so you say.”
“Speaking of helping, want to
help me?” Violet called up.
“Go ahead.” I touched Owen’s
arm. The sooner Violet got on, the
sooner we could go.
Owen flew down and picked her
up. He landed next to us.
Violet grinned. “Everyone ready
to head to Energo?” She was
annoyingly cheerful again, as if my
entire fate wasn’t hanging in the
balance.
“How long is this trip going to
take?” Owen led me over to the
railing of the ship.
“A few hours.” Violet tied her
hair up into a ponytail. She
managed to make it look perfect
despite not having a brush or comb.
I wondered if becoming an Allure
would suddenly make my hair
perfect. I pushed away the thought.
It didn’t matter. It wasn’t going to
happen. We were going to stop the
change in time. “You two can sleep
first if you want.”
“Sleep? This trip is going to take
long enough that we sleep in
shifts?” I’d thought she said it was
only a few hours.
“Not in shifts, but enough time
for you to get some rest.”
I looked over at Owen. We
needed some alone time. “I
wouldn’t mind it.”
“I agree Daisy needs rest, but
why do you want her to have it?”
Owen studied Violet. “How do we
know you are really taking us to
Energo?”
“Either trust us and get some
alone time or don’t.” Hugh
shrugged. “What’s it going to be?”
“We need alone time.” I tugged
on Owen’s arm. Stupid or not, I
wasn’t wasting another minute of
the time we had left.
16
OWEN
The bedroom in the hull of the
boat was small but luxurious. I
locked the door behind us, even
though Violet or Hugh walking in
was the least of my worries.
Daisy sighed and walked further
into the room before stopping right
in front of the double bed.
“Promise you’re okay?” I ran my
eyes up and down her body in
search of any evidence of physical
injury. I’d found one already. Her
wrist was red from where Gabriel
had gripped her too tight. He’d pay
for it eventually, but at the moment
I was just so relieved Daisy was
okay.
“I’m fine.” She ran her hand up
my arm.
“I’m sorry.” I finally said the
words that had been spinning
through my head since landing on
the boat. Now that we’d found
Daisy and the adrenaline had worn
off, I was reminded of what
happened at Violet’s house.
“For?” She lifted her head up.
I chose my words carefully. I
didn’t want to sound like I was
feeling sorry for myself, but I
wanted her to understand I was
going to make sure it never
happened again. “Allowing my
weakness to put you in danger.” I
shouldn’t have been so confident.
I’d had no idea what I was up
against.
“It’s my weakness that has us in
this positon to begin with.”
“Not your weakness. Your
strength.” The fact that Daisy was
able to handle the Allure essence
was a testament to her strength. As
was her ability to fight it from
changing her completely.
“What do you mean?” She sat
down on the edge of the bed.
I sat down next to her. “If you
were weak you wouldn’t have taken
to the Allure essence. It was your
strength it was attracted to.”
“But then my strength became
my weakness.”
“This conversation is getting too
complicated.” I rubbed her back
gently.
“Then stop talking about being
weak. You saved me, focus on
that.”
“I shouldn’t have let him take
you to begin with.”
“You had no choice. That thing
had you.” She put a hand on my
leg.
“I had no idea that Shadows
even existed. It’s a crazy species.”
I’d never seen anything like it. I
would tell Levi all about it as soon
as I saw him. The Shadows could
be a real threat to The Society. We
needed to develop a defense
against them.
“Isn’t it hard to believe all this
exists,” she spread out her arms,
“and no one in our world even
knows it?”
“I guess it’s similar to how most
humans don’t know that paranormal
creatures exist either.” Even Daisy
didn’t know about us a few years
before.
“When this is over I want to go
away somewhere where we can
forget about everything but humans
and Pterons.” She smiled.
I pulled her close. “We can go
anywhere and everywhere you
want.” I would go anywhere she
wanted. I’d never been much of a
traveler, but with Daisy any place
would be exciting.
“Do you like the beach?”
“The beach?” I thought about
the beach we’d just been on. I
probably would have found it
beautiful under different
circumstances.
“Yeah. We’ve never talked about
stuff like that.”
“We do have a lot more to talk
about.” Tons. There was so much
more I needed to learn about her,
and I couldn’t wait to have the
chance.
“Is it strange?”
“Is what strange?” I ran my
hands through her hair.
“How strong our feelings are for
each other considering how little we
know of one another?”
“No, because that’s not how love
works. It’s not about the details, it’s
the big picture and the feeling.”
“Have you ever been in love?
Before now?” She crawled onto my
lap straddling me.
I rested my hands on her hips. “I
thought I was once, but I wasn’t.”
“How did you figure out you
were wrong?” She shifted on my
lap, moving her chest even closer to
mine.
“When it ended. She hurt me,
there was no question about that,
but it wasn’t because I loved her.
What about you? Have you been in
love?”
“Before you?” She shook her
head. “Never.”
“Good.” I smiled.
“Glad to be my first love?”
“Glad to be your first, your last,
and your only.” I brushed my lips
against hers.
“That line has several meanings,
you know.”
“Everlasting.”
“That’s better.” She ran her
hand up and down my bare chest. I
wasn’t sure where I was going to
find another shirt, but at the
moment I didn’t care.
“I agree.” I left tiny kisses up
and down her neck.
She moaned, and it urged me
on.
“I know we’re going to fix this,
but I don’t want to waste a
minute.” She moved back and
pulled off her t-shirt.
“We should never waste a
minute.” I reached around and
unclasped her bra. I tossed the bra
and immediately claimed her
breasts with my hand and my
mouth. She rewarded me with a
moan and she wriggled on my lap.
She unbuttoned my pants and
took me in her hand. I groaned, and
bit down lightly on her nipple.
“I need you,” she breathed
against my neck.
“No rushing this.” I unbuttoned
her jeans.
She moved off my lap and slid
her jeans off.
Before she could follow with her
panties, I took care of them myself
as I stepped out of my own pants
and boxers.
“I could stare at your naked
body for hours.” My eyes moved
over every inch of her.
“You could do a lot more than
stare.”
“Oh yeah?” I closed the space
between us, returning my mouth to
her breast as my hand slid down
between our bodies.
“I will never get enough of your
touch.”
“That’s a good thing, because
you’re always going to get it.” I
moved my hand between her legs,
slipping one finger inside of her.
She moaned and took me in her
hand again. Her touch was strong
yet gentle, and I couldn’t get
enough of it.
She thrust her body against
mine, and I slid in another finger.
She gasped. We were both
struggling to stay standing, but
neither of us were eager to change
that yet.
“Owen,” She moaned my name,
and I couldn’t take it anymore. I
lifted her up and laid her down on
the bed.
I moved beside her and left
kisses up and down her entire body
while she watched me with wide
eyes. “I am going to worship every
inch of you.”
Her eyes met mine. “It’s all
yours.”
“Forever?”
“Forever.” She reached up and
pulled my head down to hers. Her
lips crushed into mine, and I
responded immediately. I needed
more of her taste.
I moved over her while
continuing the kiss. My tongue
tangled with hers as I thrust inside
of her, returning to my favorite
place. She opened up to me, as I
continued to move in and out until
my entire length was inside.
She raked her nails down my
back, and I continued to kiss her,
loving the combination of being
inside her body and mouth. She
moaned against my mouth, urging
me on. I sped things up, making it
harder and faster. She wrapped her
legs around me, and I pulled her
closer.
“Owen,” She moaned. She was
getting close, but close wasn’t good
enough. Her breathing picked up
and she panted. “Owen.”
I held myself back until she was
going over the edge, and then I
shuddered as I reached my own
release. I relaxed, remaining inside
of her.
“Don’t move,” she ordered.
I kissed her lips gently. “If it
were up to me I never would.”
“I love the feeling of you pulsing
inside of me.”
“That makes two of us.”
She bit down on my lip, and I
groaned before returning the
gesture.
“And I still want you.”
“Now?”
She nodded.
I moved my mouth to her
breast. I’d never done foreplay
while still inside a girl post sex. It
was such a crazy backwards thing,
but it worked. Too well. I was hard
again within moments.
She grinned. “Now that’s a great
sensation.”
I laughed. “Was that your plan
all along?”
“Maybe,” she smiled coyly.
“Well, it worked.” I ran my lips
down her neck while I prepared to
start all over again.
17
DAISY
“ We’re crazy.”
“Why would you say that?”
“We’re on a boat going who
knows where, driven by Allures who
may or may not be on our side, yet
we’re down here naked.” I ran my
hand down his bare chest to
emphasize my point, and because
he was too irresistible not to touch.
“Yes, we are naked, aren’t we?”
He pulled me on top of him.
I giggled. He was the only man
to ever make me giggle. “That
wasn’t a cue that we should have