Page 101 of Whispers of Wisteria
I bumped against something solid, and a rough hand closed over my shoulder. I twisted my upper body, glancing up.
Miles.
“Time to go,” he said, looking at my face, suddenly serious. He wrapped his hand around my left elbow. “Stop laughing,” he told Anthony.
The necromancer was, indeed, failing terribly in concealing his amusement. His shoulders were hunched forward, and though he’d covered his mouth, he still couldn’t hide the smile.
“Relax.” Anthony looked up, wiping the corner of his eye with a crooked finger. “It worked; they’re gone anyway. Plus, now they’ll leave you alone. You should thank me.”
It was only when he said this that I realized it was true: the gymnasium had emptied beside the three of us.
“It’s not like anyone will be suspicious.” Anthony shrugged. “They couldn’t even breathe. She was so pissed that she entranced the whole room.”
Entranced?I glanced between the two of them, my head still spinning.
“You moron!” Miles’s touch dropped from my arm, and he brushed past me, grabbing the front of Anthony’s hoodie as he shook the necromancer. “There’s a fae on my team!”
“What?” Anthony’s mirth vanished within a breath, and he glanced past Miles, around the empty room, without fear of the witch’s threatening hold. “Who?”
“Kent.”
Anthony’s brows drew together, seemingly unimpressed by Miles’s answer. “Kent… who?”
“Kent…” Miles’s forehead wrinkled as his face reddened. “Kent… I don’t know his last name! The waterboy!”
“What do you need a waterboy for?” Anthony pushed Miles’s fist. “Still, stop stressing. If he’s not skilled enough to be on the team, he wouldn’t be able to withstand it.”
“I couldn’t stop her without causing a scene! And I’m not going to assume he was unaffected; he’sfae.” Miles shookAnthony once more and then let him go with a push, causing the necromancer to stumble. “Go take care of him.”
“But you don’t even know his last name!” Anthony was rubbing his chest. “How am I supposed to—”
“I don’t care. If you need help, get Bryce or Brayden. They know the fae here.” I’d rarely heard this firmer, more unforgiving side of Miles. He stood, arms crossed, with an unmovable and thunderous expression on his face. “Just make sure he doesn’t talk.”
Anthony’s expression darkened. “Fuck you, man.” He placed my tote on the floor and swung his bag over his shoulder. Then, he stomped through the large metal doors without further argument.
My bravado had long since faded. I was trembling as fear of the unknown filled my thoughts with terrifying scenarios. “What’s going—”
But I didn’t get a chance to complete my question. The second the doors slammed closed, Miles crushed me to him as he took three steps forward. He only stopped when my back was pressed against the side of the bleachers.
“Miles…?” My words wavered as my skin tingled. His eyes were darker than usual, almost dark chocolate, and the heated look he was giving me nearly caused me to melt into a puddle at his feet.
I was trapped between the bleachers and the unmovable force holding me.
But what was he so worked up about?
“That wassohot.” Miles pressed his forearm into space above my head as he leaned in. His breath was warm as he grasped my chin in his other hand. He nudged my face up and said, “Putain, tu m’allumes tellement.”
My pulse soared, and the room seemed to shrink as the shadows from the rustling branches outside moved over hismassively cut figure. I had no idea what he was saying, but I didn’t think it was cursing and blasphemy this time.
“Say my name,” he demanded.
“Miles…” I started, but his mouth pressed against mine.
An explosion of light flashed behind my eyelids, and a tingle shot up my spine. A warm feeling spread over my skin, starting from the center of my chest and down my arms and legs, as he moved closer. He pressed his tongue over the seam of my mouth, demanding entrance, and I was too weak to protest even if I wanted to.
And I didn’t want to.
My focus shattered into fragments of sensation as his tongue moved against mine. His body was broad and hard, and he pushed his hand from my face, spreading his fingers open across my back as he effortlessly lifted me further from the ground until our stomachs were touching.
