“And as for you.” I point a finger at him. “The last time I saw you, you put me to sleep with your little mind power pushing-thoughts-into mind ability thing or whatever you call it.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry about that.” He stuffs his hands into his pockets, strands of his dark hair falling into his vibrant green eyes. “You were asking so many questions and I didn’t know what to tell you, but it was wrong of me to do that to you.”
“That’s the second time you’ve done it,” I say. “Please don’t do it again… It makes me uncomfortable.”
He nods. “I won’t. And again, I’m sorry I did it at all.” The corners of his lips pull into an innocent smile. “Please forgive me.”
I shake my head, wrestling back a smile. “What is with you Portersons and trying to charmingly smile your way out of everything?”
“I think she might be on to us,” Porter snickers and I almost look at him, but I’m still a bit hesitant to do so, worried about what I’ll feel.
So instead I look at Foster who’s assessing me with his brows dipped.
“What’s wrong?” I ask self-consciously.
He shakes his head, erasing the look. “I was just thinking about something.”
I wait for him to explain what, but he remains silent, staring at me in a way that makes my skin hum with heat and my powers spark, lulling underneath my skin, and sending a gentle breeze through the air. The vines dangling from the branch-like ceiling begin to sway, reminding me of where we are.
“How long do we have to stay here?” I wonder, glancing back at Foster.
He silently stares at me for a moment longer. “Probably until we can figure out our next step. We need to warn you about the faeries, though. They can be tricky, sneaky creatures so you’re going to need to be careful around them. We did put up a couple of temporary protection charms on all of us and on the link, so we should be safe for now.”
I shiver at the for now part.
Then it really hits me, where we are, what’s going on, the bigger picture of it all.
“The fey world… Faeries…” I shake my head as I attempt to grasp what he said. “How is this my life now?”
“I know it’s a lot to take in,” Foster tells me, brushing his knuckles across my cheek.
A low, reverberating growl has him pulling back with a sigh. Then he throws a glare in Porter’s direction. My gaze strays to him too.
Unlike the last time I looked at him, his face is now visible thanks to the twinkling lights glowing from the vines above us. Looking at him in the light, I’m reminded of how gorgeous he is. All of the Porterson brothers are, but Porter has more of a, I guess prettier quality to him is the best way to put it; with short blond hair, full pierced lips; and lavender eyes. He’s also tall and lean, and his skin is heavily inked with tattoos similar to the ones on Max’s arms.
As our gazes weld, I regret looking at him at all, as the feelings I felt when he drank my power from me resurface, some of them wonderful but some of them terrifying.
I want to crawl out of my skin and slip inside him…
What the actual effing hell? Where did that thought come from?
“Calm down,” Foster snaps at Porter, his tone conveying a warning.
A smirk rises on Porter’s lips as he glances at Foster. “Are you telling me what to do, little brother? That’s… “ he rubs his jawline. “Amusing.”
“You promised,” Foster reminds him with a pressing gaze.
Porter’s smirk fizzles. “I know. And I’m doing my best, but between the link and this…” He bites at his bottom lip as his gaze skates to me. “This is more complicated than I thought it was going to be.”
My stomach flutters, sending shivers across my body and a flurry of snowflakes drift from the ceiling, ice glazing across the vines and turning them into icicles.
“Complicated is an understatement,” Easton mutters, glancing up at the winter wonderland that has now taken over the ceiling.
I’m not sure what just happened with my powers, but I have a feeling I should be embarrassed about it.
Easton loudly clears his throat. “I think everyone might need a time out.” He takes my hand and effortlessly lifts me to my feet. “How are you doing with all of this? I know it has to be a lot to take in.”
While Easton may usually push my buttons, but I’m grateful for the subject change he’s giving me.