“That will not help my control,” he said, his voice a low rumble.
At that, I smiled. “I know.”
“This isn’t the time,” Knox said as his hand slid around my back and pulled me closer, his actions in clear conflict with his words. His fingers trailed up my sides, taking the hem of my shirt along with them, and the press of him against my body told me he was more than ready to betray his sentiments.
And I was more than happy to let him.
“It’s the perfect time,” I whispered in his ear. Then I took a fistful of his blond hair and yanked it hard, craning his head back far enough to part us. He fought against my hold, and his warm yellow stare met mine full of hunger.
It was like a match to a powder keg.
It didn’t matter that the end was near, or that shit had gone sideways, or that a war we weren’t sure we could win would begin any minute. That death awaited us with open arms that we might not escape. That everything we’d worked so hard to secure could disappear in the blink of an eye. Because, in that fleeting moment, time stopped.
He tugged my pants down as I ripped his shirt over his head, need overriding any rational thought. We scrambled and clawed and grabbed until my back hit the wall and Knox thrust himself inside me. I cried out with the pressure, but the thick walls soaked up the sound. No echoes of our desire ricocheted through the training room to alert the others.
Or so it seemed.
As I clung to Knox, doing all I could to weather the storm he released, a shadow spilled into the room. One I recognized well. Merc’s silhouette of black-on-black lingered there for a moment, then took a step closer, into the light. My breath caught in my throat and my body went rigid, but Knox continued; whether he knew Merc was there or not was a mystery.
I felt embarrassment rise inside me, but it was dashed in an instant when Merc, in all his regalness, merely stepped further into the light of the room and nodded, that single, slow bob of his head reinforcing the agreement we all had. But it was the small tug at the corner of his mouth—the way he folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the wall to watch—that really made my insides warm and writhe.
“Do not stop on my account,” he said, voice rich and low and huskier than normal. “I can wait.”
Knox waited a moment longer before burying himself deeper inside of me. I gasped, and my eyes slammed shut as our bodies moved together. But when they opened again, all I could see was Merc staring at me from the far side of the room, hunger in his eyes. I fixed my gaze on him with equal intensity and never looked away. Not as Knox ground me against the wall. Not as he kissed his way down my neck. Not even as he pushed me over the edge and came inside me like a storm cloud opening, thunder rolling through my body like a violent wave.
As our breathing slowed and our muscles went slack, Merc slowly stalked toward us, took my chin in his hands, and lifted my face so he could kiss me in a way he never had. To claim me. To own me. Knox neither moved nor said a word as he did; he just held me up and made good on his promise to share me with the vampire king.
“I wish we had more time,” Merc said, the intent behind his words as clear as could be, “but the factions have gathered in the media room, so we must go.” Knox lowered me down, and I quickly sorted out my clothing as he did the same. And all the while, Merc’s dark stare was pinned on me. “Shall we?” He swept his arm toward the door and Knox led the way, casting a mischievous glance back at me as he walked. I started to follow, but Merc caught my arm. “I really, truly do wish we had more time…”
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Any sign of Larken yet?” Knox called back to us from where he waited on the stairs.
“None, which is disconcerting, to say the least. I thought for sure there would be something when we returned…some type of ambush, given how she seems to always be a step ahead.”
“Maybe she still is,” I muttered to myself. “Maybe we just don’t know how.”
“Of that, I have little doubt.”
“Then we need to find a way to draw her out,” Knox said, leading the way to the main floor. “A way to bait her. Something she wouldn’t pass up.”
Something in his tone of voice set me on edge.
“Something like what?”
His lack of response must have freaked Merc out a little because, in two massive steps, he passed me to catch up to the alpha. He dragged him to a halt with a hand on his arm and turned him around. Knox let out a warning growl, and Merc did the same in return.
“If you are thinking what I suspect you are thinking, then the answer is no, if for no other reason than you cannot ensure that she won’t succeed in taking it.”
“She won’t if we set a trap—”
“And if that trap fails because she once again has expected it? What then, Trevor?”
“What are you two arguing about?”
“His plan,” Merc answered, voice curt.
“I don’t remember him saying what it was—”
“He did not have to,” Merc replied. “I know exactly what it is.” He looked back at me, his expression tight. “He wants to be the bait, or more accurately, to dangle Phineas’ powers in front of Larken like a fool—”
“It’s a solid idea—”
“If you want to get yourself and others killed, then yes. It is.”
“Knox,” I said, worry tainting my tone, “you can’t. All it would take would be for her to grab you—”
“It won’t come to that—”
“Merc is right. You can’t know that.”
I heard my voice break and could feel my eyes welling with tears, but it was the way his eyes softened when he looked at me that was the most telling about how desperate I must have looked and sounded.
He opened his mouth to explain—or to plead his case—but the sound of a door slamming open above echoed through the concrete stairwell, cutting him off.
“Yo!” Dean shouted down to us. “You need to get up here. Now.” Knox and Merc rocketed up the final flight of steps as I rushed after them. Dean stood in the doorway, face lined with concern. “If you don’t get in here soon, shit is going to pop off.”
“Understood.”
We filed into the media room to find a war all its own brewing there. Tensions were at their highest and everyone was on edge, to say the least. Knowing that the fey queen was out there concocting an evil plan only made things worse.
“Everybody calm the fuck down,” Knox yelled as he entered the room. “I have an idea that should bring the queen to us.” The room went utterly silent in a second.
“Knox, no—”
“It’s the best plan, Piper, and you know it.”
“What plan?” Foust asked, stepping to where Knox had stopped in the middle of the room.
“Larken wants what I inherited from Phineas, so we’re going to make her think she can get it.”
“Fuck no,” Brunton growled, shoving his way through the group to reach his alpha. His objection was echoed by the Alaskan boys. And Grizz. And Merc’s brothers. Reinhardt looked concerned but said nothing.
But it was Kat’s reaction that took me completely by surprise.