Shadow Warrior: The Nightwatch Academy book 3 Read online

  My body shuddered, limbs quivering from the orgasm. Hyde lapped at me, taking it all, and then raised his head to lock gazes with me. His eyes were almost black, edged with a ring of emerald.

  I broke. How couldn’t I? “Just this once …”

  “Just this once,” he echoed.

  I sat up and reached for his feytech skin. I peeled it back, inch by inch, until his chest was bare to me. Powerful, velvet skin over muscle. I ran my fingers over the tattoos that curled their way up to his neck, lingered at his jaw, and then skimmed over his face to trace his scars. He closed his eyes as if my touch was agony and whispered my name. My heart ached with what would never be while my mind resolved to taste it just this once despite the pain it would bring. His cock was huge and hard, straining to be free of the material. I ran my thumb over the tip through the feytech. Hyde sucked in a breath. His hand slid into the hair at the nape of my neck and formed a fist.

  “I think I’m blinded. Ever heard of closing a door?” Larkin’s sarcastic drawl cut through the haze of desire and reality slapped me in the face. Hard.

  What was I doing? This was asking for pain. Sex with Hyde would be so much more than just sex. Sex with Hyde would be a soul-cutting scar.

  My hand was still on his arousal. His hand still tangled in my hair. I lifted my chin to meet his eyes and saw the sorrow there, the goodbye. He leaned in until his lips hovered above mine, so our breath mingled, and tears threatened my vision. The kiss was sweet and all too brief, and yet it sliced at my soul.

  Hyde released me and stepped back before shrugging back into his feytech skin.

  “Tut, tut,” Larkin said softly.

  My neck felt stiff, my head heavy as I turned and stared at Larkin. Anger rose in my chest like a tsunami, partly at my weakness, and partly at the interruption that forced me to face my bad decision.

  “Tut, tut? Weren’t you the one encouraging me to give Hyde some love? What changed, huh? What now?” Tears of frustration pricked my eyes.

  Larkin sighed. “I read your mind.” He shot Hyde a glare. “Orion’s law. Are you trying to get her killed?”

  Hyde tucked in his chin and shook his head. “No one will know about this. I shouldn’t have. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “You weren’t thinking,” Larkin said. “Love can do that to a person.”

  Love.

  The unspoken fucking L-word again.

  Hyde’s jaw clenched, and he made a guttural sound of frustration in the back of his throat.

  Larkin walked into the room and stood between us. “If you want her, you know what you need to do.” He crossed his arms. “Until then …” He pointed to the exit.

  Hyde fixed his gaze on Larkin. “Thank you.” He scooped up his armor and walked out of the room without giving me a second glance.

  It hurt.

  Larkin’s shadow fell over me. “Well, that was close, wasn’t it?”

  Close was an understatement. Larkin had arrived just in time. Or had he?

  He looked at my lap and then turned his back on me.

  Shit, I had my snatch on display. I grabbed the duvet and pulled it over my lap. “You weren’t just passing by, were you?”

  “Meh, I may have heard your contradictory thoughts. They were pretty loud, as were all the moans.”

  I sat up against the headboard. “I would have …“ I broke off to gather my thoughts. “I wanted him to be mine … even if it was for a little while.”

  “I know. But you deserve better than one night,” he said softly.

  “I usually prefer one night.”

  “But not with Hyde. Not with Brady.”

  “No.”

  “But you’re not ready, not yet.”

  He was pulling things from my psyche, things I hadn’t completely worked through yet, but when he verbalized them, they made perfect sense. I’d fucked around. One-night stands had been my forte. One night with Hyde shouldn’t matter. One night with Brady, whether he ended up mated to me or not, wouldn’t have mattered to the old Indie, but it mattered to me now.

  I wasn’t that woman anymore.

  I was more.

  I wanted more.

  I deserved more.

  “Yes.” Larkin patted the back of my hand. “You do. And Hyde knows that. Let’s just hope it doesn’t get him killed.”

  Seven

  Kash was waiting in the foyer, no bags, no cases. He was dressed in dark denim jeans, a black T-shirt, and a sexy leather jacket. I dragged my gaze down to his boots, steel-toed and dangerous-looking.

  He looked … hot.

  “Where’s your stuff?” I joined him by the main doors.

  He looked amused. “I don’t need to take stuff when I go home.”

  “Oh, yes, you probably have duplicates of everything.”

  “Nope, upgrades.”

  He obviously wasn’t embarrassed about being wealthy; heck, I’d been one of the wealthy once, still was, but I’d spent so long in the supernatural slums, living like a pauper, that opulence was a distant memory.

  “What about you?” He glanced at my unimpressive backpack. “Is that all you’re taking?”

  I shrugged. “I should hope that as my fake boyfriend, you’ll be providing me with all the stuff I need for a comfortable stay.”

  He bit back a smile. “Ah, diamonds and pearls.”

  “Nope. Blood bags and burgers. I’m pretty low maintenance.”

  “Just the kind of woman I like.”

  “Lazy.”

  “Not when it counts,” he drawled.

  “And when would that be?”

  “In the bedroom.”

  “Just the bedroom? How uninventive.”

  His eyes lit up. “Silk sheets, champagne, the right soundtrack, and a few extra touches …” He narrowed his eyes, sucked his bottom lip into his mouth, and then slowly released it in an action that made my breath catch. Those lips … fuck. “Trust me,” he continued. “Bedroom sex with me will take you places.”

  I dropped my gaze and shrugged to cover my fluster. “Well, good for you, Raj, good for you. Now, can we leave?”

  He pushed open the main door. “The port awaits.”

  I followed him out into the sunlight. In the mist, the brightness was muted, but here it was unfettered. It stung my eyes and made them water. It was hard to remember that there’d been a time when the sun had rendered me as weak and vulnerable as a human.

  Kash bounded down the steps and made a beeline for the fountain that rose up like an impressive guardian at the front of the Academy. This was the main port. The one that brought students here from all over. It didn’t spew water because it was a transport device.

  Kash pulled a pass from his pocket. A gold card that shimmered in the dawn light and then climbed into the fountain. I joined him.

  “You ready?” he asked.

  My gaze dropped to the card. “You sure you have the correct coordinates?”

  He slid a smirk my way. “Afraid I’ll kidnap you, take you to my secret lair, and do wicked things to you?”

  I blinked in surprise. “No. Just that we’ll end up miles from where we need to be.”

  “Oh.”

  It was my turn to bite back a smile.

  “Well, hold on.” He pushed the golden card into a slot in the fountain, then pulled it back out. There was a snick, and then the world lit up white.

  We materialized in an alley. And if the smell was anything to go by, there was a Chinese restaurant nearby.

  “Seriously? An alley?”

  “Warded from human eyes,” Kash said. “It works. Come on.”

  “Where are we? I thought we were going to Mirage Hills.”

  “Oh, we are.” He strode off.

  I followed. “You didn’t answer the first half of my question.”

  “Mirage Hills is surrounded by acres of forest land, and this is the closest village.” We stepped out of the alley and onto a main street. “Serenity is a quaint place filled with simple humans who like
to get on with life.”

  “No supes?”

  “Nope. The village is under weaver protection. We keep it clean.”

  “Nice.”

  He headed off down a cobbled street, drawing a few curious glances from pedestrians.

  “When traveling to the Academy, students head to the village and port from the alley. It’s the only authorized port for miles.”

  “And how far is Mirage Hills from here?”

  “Thirty-five miles.”

  “Lead the way. I don’t mind a trek.”

  “Oh, we’re not walking.” He stopped by a sleek black motorbike. “We’re riding.”

  Oh, man, the bike was a beauty. All clean lines and power. It had been a while since I’d ridden one.

  “You like bikes?” Kash asked.

  “Yeah, and I can ride them too.”

  “Nah, not this one. This one only works for me.” He climbed on, and the engine purred to life, no keys in the ignition required.

  “Sweet.”

  “You best get on and hold on real tight.”

  Yeah, I bet he’d love that, but there was no denying the bubble of excitement in my belly. I climbed up and wrapped my arms around his waist.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  The purr intensified, and then we were peeling away from the curb and onto the road. The stores and houses whizzed by, and in a blink, we were on a country road. The wind whipped through my hair and pricked my eyes, but fuck, this was perfect.

  Greenery all around just us, the open road, and the vibration of a beast of a bike between my thighs, yeah, perfect. I inhaled the leather smell of Kash’s jacket—his choice of attire made sense now—and closed my eyes. There was something undeniably seductive about a guy on a motorbike, and one that looked like Kash, with his bronze skin and sexy popstar hair, was hard to resist.

  I tightened my grip, slipping my hands under his jacket to run them over his abs. He may not be stacked with bulky muscle, but that, beneath my fingers, was definitely a six-pack. The guy was lean, toned muscle, and I was blatantly groping him now. Shit. What was up with that?

  I ordered my hands to stop their exploration.

  His chest rumbled as if in protest.

  “Don’t stop.” His voice was clear despite the roar of the engine, as if he were behind me, lips grazing the shell of my ear. “Keep going.”

  Heat pooled at the apex of my thighs, and the vibration of the bike sent unexpected tingles through my body. My nipples were suddenly painfully hard. Thank God there was plenty of material between us. The last thing I needed was to be attracted to Kash. My brain was already in emotional overload dealing with Brady and Hyde. Payne’s words came back to me, his revelation that weaver females took more than one mate.

  Was that really what I wanted to do? Could I handle it? Wait, was I considering Kash as a possible lover?

  The bike swerved, and I held on tighter, pressing the side of my face to the small of Kash’s back and sliding my hands up over his pectorals to hook under his arms.

  “Shit, Indigo. You feel so good,” he said.

  A shiver ran down my spine. How was he doing that?

  And then we were turning onto a narrow track, the bike jolted and bumped, pushing me closer to Kash, and a canopy of trees closed in above us. We hurtled onto a green plain of grass. A wall loomed in the distance, blocking our view, high and gray and forbidding.

  Mirage Hills.

  We were here.

  Eight

  The gates opened for us as we drew closer. Was someone watching? How did this work? But then we were through and driving down another path surrounded by greenery and trees. It sloped down and then up, and I bit back a gasp as Mirage Hills unfolded beneath us. It was a settlement all its own. Houses and winding streets and austere-looking buildings unfolded, and jutting up from the center of it all was a cluster of ivory towers. These had to be the towers Kash had been speaking of.

  This was where they were keeping Payne.

  I needed to get in there.

  We were in the town proper now, passing stores and bookshops, and then Kash took a turn onto an ascending road. The air tasted strange, like candy floss and rainbows, and my head swam. My grip on Kash loosened a fraction.

  “Hold on,” he ordered. “It will pass.”

  He was right, the loopy feeling did pass, and then we were rolling down a side street lined with impressive houses. All gated, all detached, and all at least three stories high.

  Fuck.

  Kash didn’t stop. Instead, he continued to an access road. We had one of those—a road that led to our property, and there it was, the wrought iron gate. This one didn’t open for us.

  Kash cut the engine. “I just need to buzz us in.”

  I scooted off the bike so he could climb off. There was an intercom thingy attached to the stone pillar that framed the gate. Kash buzzed and waited. A cool, crisp male voice answered.

  “Monica Raj residence.”

  “Hey, Stephen, it’s Kash.”

  “Master Raj.” There was warmth in the voice now. “Please, come in.”

  The gate began to swing open.

  Kash ran a hand through his windblown hair and sauntered back to the bike. “You ready to meet the clan, girlfriend?”

  I fluttered my eyelashes. “Let’s do this, Pumpkin.”

  He snort-chuckled and climbed back onto the bike. I clambered up behind him, and then we were off.

  A pang of unease had my pulse picking up because I’d had liaisons but never been anyone’s girlfriend before. Being with Brady was the closest I’d come, and even then, we hadn’t made it official.

  How would he feel about me being here with Kash and faking being his girlfriend? No. Brady would be okay with it. He’d understand I was doing this to get to Payne.

  Fucking hell. That house … My mouth dropped open at the sight of the elegant, opulent monstrosity staring at me—hundreds of eyes in the form of windows. Arches and flourishes and gargoyles jutting out from the edges of the building to channel water from the roof and away from the building.

  Kash brought the motorbike to a halt, and the engine cut out. The impressive double doors swung open, and a petite woman with dark hair coiled atop her head stepped onto the porch.

  Her dark eyes were sharp, intelligent, and hard, but as they settled on Kash, they warmed and crinkled at the corners.

  “Welcome home, son.”

  * * *

  Fuck me, this place was the tits. At least that’s what Ned, my boss who’d run the pit, would have said. I should be used to the opulence, but it had been a while since I’d been surrounded by marble and velvet.

  Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and the whole place had a light, airy feel due to the gold and white color scheme. I hated to think how long it took to clean these white marble floors, or what it would take to keep the cream rugs and sofas clean.

  Yeah, if it were me, I’d have gone for dark wood and brown leather sofas, maybe with some colorful cushions to lighten up the room. But this … This was like walking into heaven—if heaven included a stern Indian lady who looked as if she wanted to snap off my arms and beat me with them until I confessed my sins.

  Monica Raj might be small, but she had a huge aura, and it was pressing on me now. Fuck, it was wrapping its disembodied hands around my throat and squeezing.

  I’d never been one to shy away from a challenge, so I raised my chin and looked her square in the eyes. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Raj.”

  “Likewise.” Her tone said otherwise, but I’d take her at face value.

  I needed to be here. I needed Kash’s help, and this was my way in.

  “Have you eaten?” she asked. “Breakfast?” And then she canted her head. “Do you eat, or are your nightblood genes in control of digestion?”

  I’d always wondered why I enjoyed food more than the other nightbloods. It made sense now. I mean, I was also a weaver.

  “I eat, and I enjoy it.
”

  She considered me for a long beat. “Good. Come with me.”

  Kash slipped his hand into mine, and I allowed him to take it without even flinching. His palm was warm against mine, his skin soft, but his grip was firm. It felt … nice … natural.

  His mother’s gaze dropped to our joined hands, and she sighed and turned away.

  “Cook has put out a spread. She’s excited you’re home. You were always her favorite.”

  She led the way deeper into the house, under high arches, and through beautifully decorated rooms, but I’d grown up surrounded by beauty. Problem was, in my world, all it served to do was hide the ugliness beneath.

  We entered a grand dining room with a table built to seat an army. Kash’s family either loved big tables or liked to entertain.

  One end of the table was laden with food, and from the whiff I was getting, there was bacon, eggs, toast, and possibly some hash browns. Nice.

  My stomach did a happy dance, and my fangs didn’t throb. I’d had a blood bag last night, so I should be okay for another day or so.

  “Please sit,” Monica said.

  Kash released my hand, his fingers brushing along my palm and his fingertips kissing mine before we lost contact. He pulled out a seat for me, then rounded the table and sat opposite me.

  Plates were piled with food, and for a few minutes, I was all about the flavor.

  “You do have a healthy appetite,” Monica said. She sounded perplexed. “Have you always?”

  I finished my mouthful of bacon. “Pretty much. I just never thought much on it.”

  “And blood?”

  I grinned. “Oh, I both need and like that.”

  She sat back in her seat. “When Kash told me he was bringing home Carter’s illegitimate offspring, my instinct was to forbid it. Kash is my only son, and I want the best for him. However, on reflection, I realized that your heritage is not your fault. You did not choose to be what you are. You may have been raised a nightblood, but you have a right to know what being a weaver means.”

  I picked up another bit of bacon. “Plus, I can shadow cast, which is pretty rare, right? I mean, who wouldn’t want that gene to be added to their bloodline?”