Page 178 of Taken By the Fae

He swallows the sounds of my pleasure, and my heart hammers in my chest as I lose control of my body, moaning against his lips.

Everything in me tightens, and I nearly lose my grip on the railing when an orgasm rips through me. Tristan growls deep in his throat, tugging me against him as his own orgasm slams into him.

I break the kiss, panting as I fight to catch my breath and ride the aftershocks of my climax. I fall back into his chest and swipe the sweat from my brow. “Holy shit,” I breathe.

Tristan pulls out of me, sending shivers skating across my skin, and bends to kiss my cheek. “Hmm,” he purrs. “Let's go have dinner. You’ll need to replenish your energy for what I have planned for you.” He pulls me around to face him and smoothes the front of my dress, shooting me a wicked smirk.

Fucking hell. I want to skip dinner.

I chuckle at the torn fabric of my panties on the patio, snatching them up and shoving them into my jacket pocket as Tristan takes my hand, then grab my wine before we walk inside and meet everyone in the dining room.

Allison sends me what she thinks is a subtle grin—it’s not—and Oliver looks none the wiser, because he is. At least one person didn’t hear us.

Aside from the earlier fae meeting, Oliver’s been with us since we said goodbye to Max a few days ago. I pulled him aside after we left the cemetery to share what Max asked me to tell him and held him while we both cried. He’s nowhere near his easygoing, teddy bear-like self, but at least he’s not locking himself in his dorm. So long as I can keep an eye on him, make sure he’s handling things okay and knows I’m here to talk whenever he needs, I don’t have to worry so much about him.

“Oh, you decided to join us,” Nikolai says with a mischievous grin.

“Watch it, Sterling,” Tristan warns, and Skylar appears, punching Nikolai in the shoulder. He disappears for a moment before returning from the kitchen with his hands full.

“Bet you never thought you’d actually use this room, did you, Westbrook?” Nikolai says with a grin, reaching to set a steaming dish on the table.

“I never thought I’d let you into my home, so crazier things have happened.”

I hide my laugh behind my wineglass, taking a sip before setting it on the table and lowering myself into a chair. Tristan chooses the seat next to me, Allison and Oliver sit across from us, and Nikolai and Skylar each take an end of the table.

“He can cook,” Allison announces after surveying the spread of dishes in front of her.

“Damn right, he can,” Nikolai says.

I steal a look at the spread in front of us. Nikolai was in the kitchen for over an hour preparing everything, and it smells amazing. He made chicken in some sort of cream sauce, several dishes full of broccoli, asparagus, carrots, roasted potatoes, and garlic bread. My stomach grumbles, making my cheeks heat when Tristan glances over at me with a faint grin.

“I want to raise a glass,” Nikolai starts, standing at the head of the table, drink in hand.

“Oh, good,” Skylar mutters.

Nikolai winks at her, and she shoots him an icy glare. “As I was saying, a toast. To all the shit we’ve endured. We got to this point, so what the hell? Let’s keep going.” He lifts his glass in the air, then takes a drink.

“That was the most mediocre toast I’ve ever been forced to sit through,” I say. “Thanks for that, Nikolai.”

“Whatever,” he mutters half-heartedly. “Please, enjoy the food I prepared for hours in the kitchen.”

Skylar snorts.

“Something to say, kitten?” Nikolai says with an arched brow, a hint of a challenge in his voice.

Her eyes narrow on him. “Nothing complimentary.” She spoons some broccoli onto her plate without breaking Nikolai’s gaze.

A quick glance at Allison tells me I’m not the only one feeling the tension crackling between these two right now.

“Easy, kids,” Tristan cuts in. “Some of us would like to eat dinner.”

Skylar spares him a glance. “Have at it,” she says with a faint smile.

He chuckles, shaking his head at her.

We all fill our plates with food and eat in silence for a while before Allison says, “Are we going to talk about the elephant in the room?”

Nikolai laughs. “Which one, Allison? There are plenty, so take your pick.”

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