Page 29 of Sophie's Ruin
The words sounded like a vow, ringing out in the cool night air as I turned and walked inside the house.
15
Iwas lying on my back on the blue-and-white blanket, bathed in the warm sunlight. A sigh of contentment left me as I closed my eyes and let myself sink past the fabric into the soft grass and the hard earth underneath. Small rodents scurried in the tangled undergrowth, while tiny insects burrowed into the ground, and birds fluttered in the tree branches above. The cacophony of sounds had harmony in it—endless and beautiful, and the world around me was how it was meant to be—bursting with life. I inhaled deeply, drawing the bountiful energy in. It settled deep inside my chest, grounding me, making me whole. I thought I was beginning to understand what it truly meant to be a White Witch, to embrace that side of me in its entirety.
“Sophie?” came Henry’s deep voice from my right, and my eyes fluttered open as my skin prickled with awareness. It was a pleasant feeling, one of acute excitement and anticipation. Feeling my cheeks flush, I turned my head and smiled softly.
“I was hoping to see you,” I breathed, my gaze gliding over the features that were painfully beautiful yet harsh and unyielding at times.
Right now, Henry’s face was relaxed, his eyes hooded as he stared at me from beneath his long lashes.
“I was hoping to see you, too,” he said low, reaching with his right hand to brush a strand of hair from my cheek.
My throat dried when his fingertips skimmed my cheekbone. The feather-light touch sent a jolt through me. At once, I became very aware that this was a dream, and I didn’t have a second to spare. I wanted to wring out every drop of pleasure from my time with Henry—I wanted to drown in it.
Moving in a flash, I straddled him, my flowery dress riding up my hips. Henry laughed, the sound nice and deep, as he hardened underneath me. Bracing my hands on his chest, I swiveled my hips, eliciting a groan from both of us. I bent down to kiss him, but before I could claim his mouth, he sat up and clasped the back of my neck.
Holding me in place, he rested his forehead on mine and whispered, “As much as I love how eager you are…” He paused, pulling away to peer at my face. “Tell me something first. How are you?”
The question caught me off guard, tamping down some of the burning desire. My heart sank just as the world around me dimmed, the sunlight receding and the temperature dropping. The darkness was closing in—I was running out of time.
Instead of answering Henry, I sealed my lips to his. He didn’t resist, opening up for me, our tongues mingling. The taste of him invaded my senses, and I sank my fingers into his hair, tugging on the silky strands. Henry let go of my neck, his hands diving under the skirts of my dress. His fingers dug into my thighs as he ground me against him. A gasp escaped, making me break the kiss to gulp a mouthful of air. Henry took the opportunity to trail kisses down my neck before I clasped his chin and guided his mouth back to mine. I kissed him deeply, greedily, as I slid his unbuttoned shirt off his broad shoulders.
The world had gotten even darker around us, but that only spurred my desire. The strokes of my tongue against his became fiercer and more demanding. When I grazed a fang over his lower lip, he shuddered, as a low growl rumbled from deep within his throat. The rough sound sent a pulse of potent lust through me, making me feral for him. I pushed on his chest, trying to bring him down, but like the last time, he resisted, lowering me to the blanket instead.
His mouth left mine, and he began kissing down my neck to my chest, pausing by my breasts to drag one sharp fang over my sensitive nipple straining through the thin fabric of my dress. My back arched off the ground as another wave of raw desire rolled through me. A breathy moan escaped when he closed his mouth around the hardened tip and sucked long and deep. I felt each maddening pull between my thighs as I writhed underneath him. He didn’t stop there. Releasing the tingling peak, he kept moving lower down my body, sliding my undergarments off in the process. My breath caught when he settled with his head between my thighs, his hands fisted in my skirts.
Darkness surrounded us now, our blue-and-white blanket the only bright spot in the pitch black. The churning shadows were beginning to encroach on our little island, licking the edges of the fabric. Panic set in as I looked frantically around, but then my gaze returned to Henry. When I saw his eyes, black with an insatiable hunger for me, desire overrode everything else, crashinginto me like a powerful tide. I didn’t care about the darkness then. It could swallow me whole for all I cared, as long as I was with Henry. My gaze dropped to his mouth, and I watched him wet his lips as if in anticipation.
All my senses became hyperaware—I couldn’t wait to feel his tongue on the throbbing point between my thighs. I knew that just one graze of his fang down there would undo me. Heknew it, too, his lips stretching in a decadently sinful smile. His dark lashes swept down, hiding the predatory gleam in his eyes as he lowered his head. My muscles tensed, and my breathing quickened. Waiting for him to do something, anything, was the sweetest torture. I almost whimpered when I felt his breath on me, on my very core. The first glide of his tongue sent a surge of lightning through my veins, jerking me awake.
I bolted upright in the bed, gasping with pleasure. My eyes darted around the room until I realized where I was—back at the witch’s cottage. Squeezing my thighs together, I threw myself against the mattress, turning my face into the flat pillow to muffle my scream of frustration. My dreams had become a blessing and curse. I couldn’t say I didn’t want them, because I would take any glimpse of Henry I could get, but waking up before being able to expel the pent-up desire for him made me want to weep. I managed to keep the tears at bay as I flopped on my back and stared at the ceiling, waiting for the brimming arousal to subside. After a few minutes, when it was still there, humming just below the surface of my skin, I slid my hand under the covers and took care of the throbbing ache while fantasizing about Henry.
Once my heartbeat and my breathing evened out, I threw the covers off me and got out of bed. Like the night before, I quickly washed up and pulled a pair of pants and a tunic out of the pile of clothing on the chair. Tonight’s garments were a warm green hue, almost matching my hazel eyes. After getting dressed, I braided my hair, hung the locket with my mother’s portrait around my neck, and put the Tear in my pocket. When I reached for the hex bag on the bedside table, I hesitated, my brows pinching in a scowl. Celeste had told me yesterday that she wanted to be present tonight when I practiced my magic.
She only wants to be there so she can hold me back,I thought, my scowl intensifying. I couldn’t let that happen. Goinginto the Black Forest without the hex bag was risky, but I was a predator now, much like the beasts that dwelled in those woods. I could take care of myself. Closing my outstretched hand into a fist, I dropped it and turned away from the table, leaving the hex bag behind.
Breathing shallowly to make less noise, I slowly opened my bedroom door, careful not to make it creak. Shadows filled the short hallway, the only light a faint glow coming from the direction of the kitchen. I could hear Celeste rummaging around in there, making her customary evening tea. Leaving the bedroom, I moved through the house on soft feet, avoiding any objects with feline grace. My vampire abilities helped me to stay undetected as I slipped out the front door and set off toward the woods.
The Black Forest felt different tonight, more awake and…hungry. When I stepped into the woods, the Forest creatures swarmed, no longer kept at bay by the hex bag I’d left behind. I bared my fangs and let out a low, menacing hiss when they converged on me. They hissed back, but scuttled away, scurrying back into the shadows. Crouched down, my claws drawn, I spun in a circle, waiting to see if any of them would be bold enough to attack. They kept their distance—it seemed I’d established my dominance.
No sooner had the thought crossed my mind than a giant wolf leaped out of the shadows from my right. The red glowing eyes and glistening teeth barely registered before the beast barreled into me, knocking me off my feet. The air whooshed out of my lungs as we landed on the ground and rolled, the force of the impact propelling us into a nearby tree. The sound was deafening as we collided with the wide, thick trunk, demolishing it in the process. With a snarl, I kicked the wolf off me and jumped to my feet. The creature flipped in the air and landed on all fours, crouching low to the ground with an answering snarl.I crouched down, too, and we squared off against each other as wooden fragments rained down all around us.
The slick black fur gleamed in the moonlight as the wolf prowled before me, hulking muscles bunching and flexing. I stood frozen, tracking its every movement. My mind flashed back to when I’d encountered one of these beasts before. The creature had almost killed me then, but Henry had saved me. He wouldn’t be able to come to my rescue now.
My breathing quickened as terror spiked. I shuddered when the wolf let out a blood-curdling growl and snapped its teeth, advancing closer. My knees weakened as I began to tremble. On shaking legs, I went to retreat, but then I remembered something—I was a vampire now and could hold my own against the beast.
A dark, guttural sound erupted, and my skin prickled before I realized that it was coming from me. I felt the other parts of me recede until the vampire side took over, and I became a predator—a killer through and through. The next thing I knew, my muscles coiled, and I was moving—rushing toward the wolf. There was no doubt, no fear. The vampire me had come for blood—she’d come to fight, and she was getting what she’d come for. When I leaped into the air, the wolf did the same, and a heartbeat later, we collided, becoming a blur of fangs and claws as our growls and snarls filled the air, echoing through the Forest.
The wolf was fast, but I was faster, avoiding the swipes of razor-sharp claws and the snaps of deadly teeth. Hot saliva splashed on my face when the beast went for my throat, but I ducked, avoiding its gaping maw, and slashed my claws across its midsection. The wolf roared in pain and tried to retreat, but I kept going after it, slashing and biting, tearing at its flesh with my teeth—the creature had brought this upon itself…it had attacked me first.
Unexpectedly, the wolf stopped trying to escape and went for another attack. When it threw itself at me, I wrapped my arms around its torso and squeezed. I kept applying pressure as the beast thrashed in my hold until a loud crack sounded, and another roar of anguish pierced the night. When the wolf went limp in my arms, I relaxed my hold, and it crumpled to the ground in a massive, bloody heap. Breath wheezed out of it, its chest rising and falling shallowly because of the ribs I’d broken. I towered over the beast, my vampire side urging me to finish this, to deliver the killing blow.
Silence settled over the woods as I lowered my gaze to the ground, to the wolf lying by my feet. Broken and helpless, it seemed smaller now, as if it had shrunk down in size. The glow of the red eyes was dimming by the second as the creature stared up at me, whimpering softly. I wasn’t sure if it was begging for mercy or asking me to put it out of its misery.
It’s neither of those things,my vampire side growled in dismay.It’s just a mindless beast, finish it.
With a snarl, I drew my clawed hand back, excitement buzzing in my veins.
