Stone Cold Seduction (17 page)

We both turned to Jax, who was watching me with an unreadable expression. “I think that we should assume Elle is going to exhibit a surprising array of magic between now and her birthday.”

“My birthday? What’s that got to do with anything?” I wanted to enjoy my birthday, damn it, not worry about what other weird, crazy things might crop up.

“You’ll be twenty-eight, correct?”

“Yes, why?”

“How old was your mom when you were born?”

“What does that have to do with anything? Instead of asking me questions when I clearly don’t have a clue, can you give me answers?” I clamped my mouth shut. I
had
to watch what I said. I wanted answers, but I didn’t want to force them out of anyone magically.

When Jax’s lips quirked, my anxiety eased. Despite my frustration, I was a sucker for his smile. He arched a brow, and I realized I hadn’t answered him.

“Oh, um, I think she was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight.” I narrowed my gaze at him. “What does that have to do with me?”

“If your mom was a demigod, that would explain why you didn’t get your powers when you were a child. The demigod genes are more confusing. Depending on who her parents were, it might help us understand why there was a delay in your magic. It might also be possible you’ll get your magic at the same age your mother was when you were born.”

Teryl snapped his fingers. “I knew it. I read a family text once. It was written by an oracle who was my great, great, great, great something or other. She was one of the rare oracles who had premonitions. She was half, well, mostly crazy. They usually are. But all she talked about were the gods and their children. About how they would ruin and sustain the lines. No one could make any sense of it, but they dutifully wrote it down, then stashed it away. I went through a phase where I wanted to read all of the family texts and came across it.”

“I bet you were the life of the party during that phase.”

Teryl ignored my sarcasm and went on. “I came across something really strange. She referenced the disgraced demigods and their children, and the end of the beginning of the war.”

Jax and I stared at him, unblinking.

He had the grace to look sheepish. “Right, I know. I told you, she was crazy. Most of what she said didn’t make sense.”

“Or maybe it does,” Jax said. “What if it’s a riddle? Another possibility is that her premonitions were unclear even to her, so she transcribed what she saw to the best of her ability.”

“I think she was plain crazy,” Teryl muttered as he tipped his seat back to get comfortable.

“That’s also a possibility. But consider it for a moment. If Elle’s mother was a demigod, why did she live her life as a mortal?”

Jax had a point.

“Would having a child make her a disgrace?” I asked. The thought was painful, but I refused to play the martyr. I swallowed my hurt. My mother had loved me, and I owed it to her to find the truth. About everything.

“I think that would depend on the father,” Teryl replied. “A shadow elf king is considered a highly favorable match for most lines, but for the gods? Probably not.”

“I agree,” Jax said, his voice low as the flight attendant rolled up with snacks. “I’ve never heard of the gods or demigods socializing with any of the lines. They keep to themselves.”

We all fell silent. Which was fine with me, because the more we talked, the more questions we came up with. It wasn’t getting us anywhere.

Jax closed his eyes and pretended to nap while Teryl took notes and stared out the window. We had a couple of hours before we landed in Las Vegas. I figured I might as well read and see if the book yielded any more clues.

By the time we touched down in Las Vegas, I’d learned oracles couldn’t spell and some of them tended to ramble. I’d learned how the lines’ magic had all altered, but not why. I’d learned a whole lot of nothing.

I fell in line between Jax and Teryl as we disembarked. The muscles in Jax’s shoulders were tense. I didn’t blame him. Our next flight left for London in two hours. I wished we could be on our way, because this airport was too big, with too many people.

“Stay close,” Jax said over his shoulder. Like I really needed the reminder.

We found our gate with little problem. Jax grabbed us a bite to eat.

I excused myself to the ladies room. I kept my head down as I washed my hands. Distracted by thoughts of my mother’s heritage, I barely noticed when a pair of well-manicured hands with blood red nail polish began using the sink next to me.

“Beautiful day for a cross-country trip, isn’t it?” a husky voice purred.

It took me a minute to realize she was talking to me. I looked up and saw a striking woman with medium length, straight black hair smiling at me. She was a few inches shorter than I am, with a slender build and dark, form fitting clothes. Her black eyes were unnerving, and her gaze never wavered from my face. Her smile, if you could call it that, was predatory.

Every instinct I had screamed for me to run.

I nodded and pasted a fake smile on my face. “Yes, it’s beautiful.” I walked past her and grabbed a paper towel, quickly drying my hands.

She followed.

“Where are you heading to?”

There was a note to her voice that put me on edge. I ignored her and walked out of the bathroom, making a beeline for Teryl. His eyes widened when he looked past my shoulder. I didn’t think that was a good sign.

“Teryl…”

I saw Jax walking up with our food. His eyes were glowing silver. I glanced around at all the people.
Please, not here
, I thought. The last thing we needed was a gargoyle running around a busy airport.

When Jax was only a few feet away, he revealed his teeth in a parody of a smile and greeted the woman I knew was behind me. “Hello, Maura.”

Chapter Eleven

Maura. One of the hunters. I felt sick and angry all at the same time. We hadn’t even made it out of the United States, and a hunter had found us. Or rather, she’d found me.

Jax circled her, and she gave him a sultry smile.

“Hello, Jaxon.”

It was official. I hated her. She said his name like she knew him.

“Why are you here?”

I felt marginally better when I heard the irritation in Jax’s deep voice. He watched her with a wary expression. The predatory gleam in her eyes had shifted when she’d seen Jax. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it was sexual. I curled my fingers into fists.

“I’m looking for Jedren’s daughter, but seeing you is an unexpected treat.” She walked her fingers up his chest. She moved with a dancer’s grace. I hated her even more. And watching her put her fingers on
my
mate pissed me off. For the first time in my life, I wanted to hurt someone. I wanted to break her fingers and all of those scary, red fingernails.

Teryl gave me a hard nudge in the back. I looked down and saw small flames at the end of my hands.

I swallowed a groan. Fire too? All on the same day? Getting to Scotland to retrieve my fate became more crucial by the hour. I tucked my hands behind my back and made fists, quickly extinguishing the flames. The fire would have to wait.

Too late. Maura had noticed and watched with interest. “Well, well. What do we have here? I know Jedren’s daughter is a shadow elf, but apparently you’re a…light elf? Phoenix?”

She dropped her hand from where it caressed Jax’s chest and stepped closer to me. Those strange black eyes regarded me as if I were a novelty. “You don’t look like a phoenix.”

Jax stepped closer, forcing Maura to shift away from me. “Maura is a gargoyle,” he said to me.

“I’m a lot more than that.” She giggled, and the sound grated against my eardrums. She winked at me. “Jaxon and I go way back.”

Condescending bitch. My smile was brittle.

“Oh, really? Funny, he’s never mentioned a Marlene being anyone important to him.”

Satisfaction curved the corners of my mouth as I watched her expression shift.
Two could play at that game,
I thought.

I saw the hunter return. Her features smoothed out, and cold, unemotional black eyes stared at me. I’m pretty sure she would have killed me right then and there if she could. The feeling was mutual. I should have been more upset by the violent feelings churning through me, but I wasn’t.

“Maura,” she corrected me, in a contemptuous voice.

I blinked in false surprise. “I’m sorry, what?”

“My name is Maura.” Her teeth were clenched.

“Right, whatever.” I waved a hand at her and smiled at Jax. “You brought food? I’m starving.”

I took the bag and threaded my arm through his. Maura might have a history with Jax and she might be out for my head, but I wasn’t going to make it easy for her.

“I know you’re Jedren’s daughter.”

I didn’t deny it. I didn’t say a word, just waited as she stared with those creepy black eyes.

“You’re coming with me.” She stared down at her fingernails, as if bored.

I had at least four inches and twenty-five pounds on her. I wanted to see her try.

“Sorry, Mary, but I’ve got things to do. My mate and I are taking a trip. Jax can be so romantic.” I smiled at him.

He gave me a strange look.

Maybe my comment had been a little overboard, but her reaction made it worth it. Her head snapped up and her nostrils flared.

“Mate?” She looked from me to Jax. “She’s joking, isn’t she? You’re not actually mated to a…whatever she is. Are you?”

Jax said nothing.

Fury began to boil beneath my skin. At her insult and his silence.

Teryl cleared his throat. “Yeah, well this has been fun, but we’ve got to get back to our lunch.”

Maura didn’t take the hint. In fact, she ignored Teryl completely. I gave him points for trying. She lost points for stupidity.

“Jaxon, I’m not sure what game you’re playing, and I really don’t care. Jedren’s daughter needs to come with me. I won’t ask again.” She reached behind herself, and I remembered Jax saying she carried a dagger. Instinct kicked in.

“Leave your dagger where it is,” I told her. “Walk away. Forget you saw me.” I put as much intention behind it as I could. It wasn’t difficult. I wanted the bitch as far away as she could get.

Her eyes flashed silver, like Jax’s could, but she dropped her hand in a jerky movement. “Jaxon,” she snarled. “What is she doing?”

“Walk away,” I repeated with a little more force. “Forget this.”

Without another word, she pivoted on her heels and walked away, her joints moving in a stiff, awkward manner.

“I can’t believe that actually worked.” Shock and relief swept through me. I smiled at Teryl. Maybe this magic thing wasn’t so bad after all.

He frowned at me, looking anything but pleased. “That was dumb.”

“Dumb? What are you talking about? I got her to leave. I thought that’s what we wanted. She’s a hunter who wants to kill me and collect the money hanging over my head.” The farther she was from me, the better. Jax, too.

“Sit,” Jax ordered, and steered us into our chairs at the gate. “Keep your voices down, we’re attracting attention.”

He was right. Other travelers sent curious glances and disapproving frowns our way.

I ignored them and crossed my arms in front of me as I slumped into a chair. Glaring, I whispered, “What did you want me to do? Let her attack me?”

“That has nothing to do with it,” Teryl snapped in a hushed voice. “Now the hunters know you have more powers than what’s typical of a shadow elf. We didn’t need to bring that to their attention.”

“He’s right. If the hunters know, they’ll go straight to the Council. Maura has not one, but two, of your secrets. And that’s something she can use against you now.”

I hadn’t thought about that. Well, crap.

“I’m surprised that worked on Maura.” Teryl sounded more worried than surprised.

“It won’t work for long. We’ll be lucky if our flight leaves before she comes back.” Jax checked over his shoulder for good measure.

“Why do you say that?” I refused to look. I was jumpy enough, and I didn’t need to worry about what she’d do to me when she finally caught up.

“She’s a gargoyle and a hunter,” Jax said, as if that were the best explanation in the world.

I waited, trying to keep my annoyance to a slow simmer. I wasn’t successful.

Teryl sighed. “What he means is, it shouldn’t have worked on her at all. Hunters are good at what they do because they’re immune or mostly immune to many forms of magic.”

“Apparently, she’s an exception.” I didn’t really care as long as she was gone. Arching a brow at Jax, I asked in a syrupy sweet voice, “Care to tell me about your history with her?”

His skin flushed, and he wouldn’t meet my gaze. “Not really.”

Teryl pointed to a small shop a few gates down. “Wow, look at that. I need to…ah…go over there.”

He jumped up and quickly walked away. Smart man.

The jealousy I’d felt when Maura had put her hands on Jax had been instant and overwhelming. I didn’t like it, but I couldn’t seem to get over it. I wasn’t going to let it go, especially since the bitch was hunting me. I had a feeling she’d hunt for Jax next. “You were telling me…?”

“Maura is a gargoyle,” Jax said on a sigh.

“You mentioned that already.”

“I’ve known her most of my life.”

I rubbed my forehead. At some point, I hoped we could have a conversation without me having to drag every drop of information out of him.

He shifted in his seat, discomfort clear on his face. “There was a time, when I was younger, when I knew you were engaged to the phoenix.”

My hand dropped to my lap, and I swiveled my head to stare at him. I hadn’t even thought about that.

“Where were you when I was engaged to MacLean?”

“I was there.” His gaze was direct. “I’ve always been there. But when I thought you were going to marry him, I was…upset.”

“Okay,” I said carefully. “What does that have to do with her?”

“We dated for a time.”

My heart stopped. My breath hitched. I couldn’t believe how painful those words were to hear. Was it just yesterday I’d told him I needed time to catch up? And now I wanted to rip her to pieces, knowing she’d had Jax. It was ridiculous. I knew it was, but I felt something inside me crack.

I nodded for him to continue. I didn’t trust myself to speak.

“We were together for about seven months.”

This time, I looked away. Seven months was a long time to develop a relationship. It was five months longer than I’d had with him. My jealousy was unreasonable, but I couldn’t seem to help it. I spoke around the lump in my throat. “What happened?”

Jax put his finger under my chin and forced my gaze up. “She wasn’t you.”

I scoffed around the hurt. “Yeah, she knows who she is. Must be nice.”

Jax shrugged. “I supposed you could look at it like that. But you’re perfect. And talented. And I know who you are.”

“Who?” I whispered. It was the million dollar question in my mind.

“You’re my mate. You’re Elle. You’re a successful business owner, and you have a smile so beautiful, it makes me crazy.” He stopped and pressed his lips together. After a moment, he sighed. “I have no talent for words. Little gem, you were destined for me. She was not. It’s that simple.”

“And now, she’s trying to kill me.”

Silver eyes gleamed at me. “She won’t succeed.”

“Not right now, because I sent her away.”

“Promise me you won’t do that again.” He rubbed his hand along one side of his jaw and I heard the soft rasp of the whiskers he hadn’t had time to shave.

“Why? Don’t I have the right to protect myself? You said I needed to handle this myself, so that’s what I was doing.”

“That isn’t what I meant.” He raked a hand through his hair and stared over at Teryl, who was trying hard to pretend he wasn’t watching us from twenty feet away.

“Feel free to tell me what you meant. Because I’m not going to sit here and let some bitch paw at you.”

My fury grew when I saw that slow, wicked smile light up his face.

“What? You think that’s funny? I wanted to tear her hair out. I am
not
a violent person.”

It should have scared me. Instead, it amazed me a little bit. I didn’t know I had that in me. I felt almost liberated, in a sense. Not because I wanted to hurt someone, but because I’d been willing to stand up for myself. Against someone who probably ate people like me for breakfast on a frequent basis.

“Are you jealous?”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re just now realizing that?”

His laugh was deep and rich, and a few people looked over and smiled when he pulled me close for a hug. “You have nothing to worry about, I promise you that. I have no interest in her. You are all I need. You are all I can handle.”

I was only slightly mollified. I pulled away from his embrace as Teryl walked over, relief clear on his face. Until that moment, I hadn’t realized how stressed he’d been. His brown eyes even had their usual spark. A crease still marred his brow, adding a few years to his face, but the small, devilish smile I knew and loved was back.

“You guys get that all cleared up?” he asked.

“Enough for now,” I said. “What’s got you smiling?”

“I got a hold of Clio.”

“You did? That’s great. How is she?” I needed news like that.

“She’s fine. Said she’s been putting in long hours. Jedren’s working her too hard.” A shadow passed over his face, but he shrugged it off. “I was going to ask if she could meet us in London, but I want to keep her away from this.”