I don’t even dignify that with an answer.
Bastard.
“I’m kind of crispy,” Emrys mutters and he has flames jumping from his hands, the ends of his hair.
Sindri’s eyes are closed. “You really should go, girl.”
“If my touch,” Mia says, walking back to the bed, sitting down beside me, “if anything can help… I’m staying with you. Not going anywhere. So deal with it.”
She’s mad.
She’s beautiful.
And as she leans over me, she’s everything that’s left in this crumbling world.
16
MIA
Jason is burning up. His skin is scalding under my palm. His eyes have turned a deep amber, his canines are so long they’ve cut into his lips, his blond hair is now mostly gray fur. His ears… They’re pointed and tufted, and his hands clawed, and I don’t know why but it’s both beautiful and scary, sexy and heart-wrenching.
He arches his back, every hard muscle in his chest outlined perfectly, his biceps bulging as he strains. He’s so insanely strong, so tall and his shoulders so wide, he could crush me easily if he wanted—or if he lost control. A powerful man who can turn into a powerful, huge wolf.
This is it. I’ve gone crazy. I should have run, just like they all told me to.
But instead, I lean over him. “Jax. Can you hear me?”
His hands jerk on the covers, and he curls them, shredding the sheets with his nails. I have to do something, stop this from happening. There’s fear in his wolf eyes.
Nobody should have to go through such fear, such pain.
Not even a bully? Not even someone who caused a death?
I don’t want to think about that now. One thing at a time. Save him, then punish him. It makes sense inside my head, I swear. A twisted kind of sense, but still.
The other boys aren’t much help right now. They’re in various positions that convey pain, and their essential, elemental magic seems to be leaking all over the place. It’s fascinating and I’m trying not to stare, to focus on Jason instead.
Jason, whose bed is starting to shoot grass. Green blades have shot up around him, like green flames, and it boggles my mind.
Not that demonblood magic is any less mindboggling, but like Ashton said, it seems more manageable. This… is getting out of hand.
Okay, let’s do this. If they agree it could work, I’ll try to touch him. More skin-on-skin than just my hand, but okay, I can start with that. Maybe it’s enough.
Though it means undressing, stripping down to my underwear. Thank God I put on Ashton’s gift, which means I’m not embarrassed to remove my clothes.
Small mercies.
I lean back to unzip and push down my skirt—and then jerk when I feel hands on my hips. It’s Ashton, his eyes crimson, fangs sharp and wicked, yanking my skirt down.
“Ash—”
Then Emrys is there, too, tugging the elastic off my ponytail, letting my hair tumble on my back, and Sindri sits down on the bed beside me, reaching for my blouse.
The intensity of their gazes is kind of frightening. I push his hands away, or try to. “Sin…”
“Relax, Dark Eyes,” Sindri says softly and tugs on the hem of my blouse, so that I have no choice but to lift my arms, let him pull it off me. “We’re a part of this. And we’ll protect you if needed.”
“Protect me.” I can’t think what he means, but his words feel right. His presence, too. All their presences.