Page 40 of A Soul’s Awakening

“As if I’d regret ending this man’s life.” But he released Sly, giving him a strong shove as he did. He already confessed to murder, and how these people had evidence of him obliterating Sly. If the Syndicate found out about this, they’d have a field day turning the city against Ren.

“Hey, hey you there! What’s going on?” Amid the chaos, a nearby police officer must have heard our scuffle and came to investigate. Not a rift warden, but probably still cozy with the Syndicate.

“This isn’t over.” Knowing that even with the Syndicate on his side, Sly wasn’t the one pulling the strings here. If he was abusing his new magic, the Syndicate wouldn’t hesitate to punish him.

“Let’s get out of here.” Eric helped Sly to his feet. Elena was by his side, ready to support him if he needed it. Sly wiped the blood trickling down the corner of his lip. The three of them fled the scene, slipping into the crowd of onlookers as they did.

“Ren, we need to go too.” The car wasn’t too far away, right around the corner, but Ren caught me around my waist and pulled me back.

“We won’t make it.” He held me tighter against him. “I have a better idea.”

His magic enveloped us, a haze of white smoke obscuring my vision. The world seemed to tilt on its side as the brightness was shut out and welcomed by pitch black. A dizzy moment later, we landed back at the house, stumbling over each other and crashing onto the living room sofa.

19

Ren’s transportation magic was unpredictable at the best of times. Add a buzz on top of that and we probably would have had better luck driving under the influence.

We landed in the living room … if you could call slamming into the couch, knocking over a side table, and skidding across the rug a landing. Ren and I were tangled together in a mess of limbs and breathless laughter, stumbling over each other before collapsing in an undignified heap on the floor.

“You okay?” I asked as I brushed his unruly hair off his forehead.

“Yeah. You?” Ren caught my hand in his, those maroon eyes fixed on mine with worry etched deep in his gaze.

“I’m good.” I smiled at him. “Thankfully, it seemed like Sly was more concerned with putting on a show than actually hurting me. I’ll have some bruising, maybe some weakness until I recover my magic, but nothing serious.” I subconsciously rubbed my arms, wondering if the silver veins were still visible and how severe the damage was this time.

“Nothing serious? That poison could have killed you if you hadn’t regained your magic in time!” As if he wouldn’t accept even a minor paper cut on my body, Ren’s magic flared through me, easing the discomfort left behind by Sly.

“You didn’t need to do that. I’m fine. I promise.” I got to my feet and helped him up. Even though adrenaline had mostly cleared away our drunken stupor, I neutralized the poisonous alcohol inside us to clear our heads. I then went into the kitchen, grabbed two glasses of water, and we sat down on the couch next to each other. Even after the crazy night we had, our attention remained solely focused on each other.

“I knew you could use my death magic, but to wield that sentient magic, too? That was pretty fucking awesome, Ren.” I cuddled up next to him, melting into his closeness and warmth.

“I didn’t know if it would work.” Ren rubbed circles on my knee, which pressed against his leg. “I think it’s because I’m protecting your soul. It recognized me as someone you trust, so when I called out to it, it listened, and made sure that punch got revenge for all three of us. I doubt that would have worked otherwise.”

“I hope I can have a do-over. I’m sorry our first date was such a disaster.” I rested my head on his shoulder. “You were right. This was awful timing.”

“I’d expect nothing less from my little dandelion weed.” He might not have realized it, but the quiet possessiveness in the way he called me his sent a warm, treacherous flutter straight through my chest.

“Ren …” I studied him closely, refusing to look away until I found the crack in his carefully constructed walls.

Desire burned there for the briefest moment before uncertainty followed, dragging it back into hiding. He looked like he wanted this every bit as much as I did but was too stubborn, scared, or guilty to do anything about it.

Too bad for him, I was taking the decision out of his hands.

His breath caught when my eyes met his, and that was all it took. I fisted his shirt and pushed him back against the couch. My lips crashed into his, insistent, almost demanding, chasing the sharp bite of beer as I urged his mouth open with my own. My heart was racing, pounding so hard I was sure he could feel it through the thin barrier of fabric between us, every beat echoing the question he was too afraid to ask and I was no longer willing to leave unanswered.

A rough, involuntary sound vibrated in his throat as his tongue slid against mine, exploring at first, then greedy. His hands finally landed, one clamping onto my waist, the other sliding up my back, making me shiver with excitement.

I broke away just long enough to scrape my teeth down the side of his neck, tasting salt and skin. “You know, this night doesn’t have to be totally ruined.”

Ren’s breath hitched. His hips rolled up instinctively, the hard line of him pressing against me through too many layers of denim. “Theo …” My name came out ragged, almost like a challenge.

I slid both hands under the hem of his shirt. Ren lifted his arms without protest, letting me peel the shirt off and toss it somewhere behind us. The sight of him bare from the waist up made my mouth water. He was all lean muscle and flushed skin, with a glint of silver catching the low light.

I leaned down and flicked my tongue over one of his nipple rings, catching the cool silver with the tip before sucking the whole peak into my mouth. Ren’s fingers dug into my shoulders, hard. A broken whimper escaped him—half pleasure, half overwhelmed—as his hips jerked up again, grinding against me in helpless little pulses.

“Theo—” His voice cracked this time, higher, urgent.

I fumbled to unbutton and unzip his jeans and tugged the fabric down.