Page 106 of Taken By the Fae

“I like to keep that private,” he murmurs lazily, his eyes dancing over my face.

“What do you want, Nikolai?”

His grin is a flash of perfect teeth. “You remember me.”

Bitterness laces my tone when I say, “You rarely forget the faces of those who attack you.”

“Are you always this dramatic, or is it because you’re hungry? I heard you talking to your seelie friend about feeder units, and no offense, but you definitely look like you need to visit one.”

I cross my arms. “What’s it to you?” The pettiness in my voice makes me cringe, but this guy is annoying.

The quirk of his lips sets me on edge. “We’ve both been…promotedrecently. And it’s pretty obvious how you’re handling it.”

“How is that any business of yours?”

“Hmm… perhaps because you’re to thank for my promotion.”

I arch a brow at him before the realization hits me. “You’re the new knight?”

Nikolai’s grin is answer enough. He leans against the wall, holding my gaze. “Believe it or not, I’d like to help you, Aurora. Not all unseelie fae would agree,” he says, lowering his voice, “but I’m relieved Jules is gone. I’ve grown rather bored with the fighting between courts, so I wouldn’t mind it ending. There’s more of a chance of that happening now. Especially considering you and Westbrook—”

“Don’t,” I cut him off, shaking my head.

He arches a brow. “What? You two aren’t…?”

I shoot him a look. “We arenottalking about this.”

“Fair enough. But you can’t keep hiding and you need to feed.” His eyes flicker between mine. “You’ll fade quickly if you continue to avoid it. It’s not a choice. You feed or you die.”

I look away, swallowing the lump in my throat. This is the last thing I want to talk about right now. I just want him to leave me alone.

“I can help you.” The softness in his voice takes me by surprise. “If you let me, I can show you how to live with this.”

My pulse dips as I stare at him. Despite knowing he’s telling the truth, I can’t help it when my eyes narrow. Nikolai is not Jules, but my thoughts still go back to the time when I trusted who I thought was my friend, Grant, only to be betrayed and used when I discovered he was actually Jules.

“Thanks,” is all I say. Not,Hey, dude, remember that time you stood by while that other guy was tossing me around like a rag doll? Not cool.

Nikolai nods. “When you’re ready, let me know.” He steps aside, giving me space, and I hurry past, walking back into the bar, not entirely sure what to do with his offer, but I can’t ignore the sensation in my gut that tells me he’s being genuine. Safe to say, I’m completely torn when it comes to Nikolai.

“Hey!” hollers a familiar voice.

I lean back to look past Allison and find Oliver and Max sitting at the bar, beers in hand. Forcing a smile, I say, “Hey.” My eyes shift from Oliver to Max, then back to Allison. A weight settles on my chest as I note seelie and unseelie fae mingling in one room. She gives me a reassuring smile and pats my leg. I shouldn’t be so wary of the idea, considering this—both sides living together peacefully—is the goal. I’m worried a fight is going to break out at any moment and someone is going to get hurt.

Forcing myself to relax, I try to enjoy the conversation our group is having. I smile and nod along, but after a while, I struggle to keep my eyes open.

During a break in the conversation, I say, “I’m going to head back to the dorm.”

Allison turns to me, her back to the guys. “You okay?” she asks, trying to keep her voice down. It’s still clear over the loud music, thanks to my newly heightened senses.

“Just tired,” I answer, then say goodnight to the rest of the group before I force my legs to carry me out the door.

Once I get to our room, I don’t bother changing before I crawl under the sheets and try to get comfortable. I toss and turn, wrapping the sheets around myself to warm up, but it doesn’t work. I’m bundled up tight and still shivering. I clench my jaw to keep my teeth from chattering and rub my hands together. This is ridiculous.

I get up and look through the closet until I find my heated blanket, then take it back to bed with me and plug it in, turning it to the highest setting as I wrap it around myself. Slowly, I stop shivering and get comfortable.

When my eyes open, the room is dark and Allison isn’t home yet. I lean over to check the time, but the clock is flashing twelve o’clock. The power must’ve flickered out after I fell asleep.

I turn on the lamp next to my bed and get up to grab a glass of water from the tap in the bathroom. Walking back into the bedroom, I freeze as a scream tears its way up my throat, and I drop the glass, spilling water all over the floor at my feet.

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