Page 68 of This Ravenous Fate
“What—”
“You let a reaper bite you?” Sterling hissed.
Her hand flew to the spot where Layla had sunk her fangs. “I swear it’s not… Sterling, please listen—”
“Look where that got me tonight. I might be fired.” His voice shook.
Elise released his arm. “He would never. You’re a Saint lieutenant. You’re like his son—”
“You don’t get it. That’s exactly why I’m upset. You take all this family stuff for granted. Not all of us can be reckless with the ones we love,” Sterling snapped.
The well of hurt in his eyes pierced Elise’s heart. Not a moment passed where Sterling did not think of his biological family; Elise knew that. She had never stopped to consider how that made him connect with her family, or how it made him twice as afraid to lose them. Still, his words picked at a soreness in her soul. Thinking of Josi, of Charlotte, and even of Layla, who had all had something taken from them, and how Elise gave herself to the Saint empire to give them a sense of normalcy and justice.
Sterling’s words echoed through Elise again.Not all of us can be reckless with the ones we love. Her chest tightened and she glared at her friend. “What is that supposed to mean?” Elise demanded.
“You know exactly what it means,” Sterling said. He left her then, cold words still hanging in the air.
Elise sank onto her bed, shoulders slumped and exhaustionburning her eyes. Her throat constricted to the point of pain with the effort to keep her tears at bay.
The worst part was that Elise knew Sterling was right.
***
Layla knew better than to believe she could sneak into the lair, but she did it anyway. Her feet were soundless on the floor all the way to her room, but when she opened her bedroom door, the light clicked on and there was Mei, waiting.
Her pretty face twisted into an expression of pure horror. “Layla, oh my God, my dress!” she nearly shrieked.
Her piercing voice hurt Layla’s ears, but she knew she deserved it. Layla had promised to take care of this dress; Mei had trusted her with it. Now it hung on her body in tatters, blood covering the delicate fabric. Layla fixed her face with a sharp glare and stepped out of the dress. As beautiful as it looked on her, even in ruins, she was tired of lugging the thing around. And it smelling like Elise’s blood, which still ravaged, or rather, bewitched her system, did not make wearing it any easier.
“We’re even now,” Layla said. She pointed to her mattress, still ruined from Mei’s accident a few weeks ago. “Actually, I would say you still owe me because what is a dress compared to a mattress, but I’m feeling generous tonight.”
Mei stood. The initial shock was gone from her face and had been replaced with cold annoyance. “You are such an ass. Sometimesyou can be really selfish, you know.”
Layla gave her a dry smile. “Then I guess that makes me a real reaper.” She collapsed onto her bed, half expecting Mei to join her, though she did not desire another presence. Despite the human blood running through her system, the day’s events beat out the adrenaline with exhaust.
Sighing, Mei scooped up her dress and headed out of the room. She stopped by the door. “You reek, by the way,” Mei said flatly.
“Do I?” Layla asked, disinterested. She knew she smelled like blood, but there was no way Mei would know whose it was. And as long as her and Elise’s tryst remained secret, Layla did not care what Mei thought about her nightly activities.
“There better not be another dead body on the news tomorrow. Or the whole clan will have your ass.” Mei shut the door behind her.
Layla closed her eyes, exhaling. Alone, she didn’t stop her mind from slipping to the Saint heiress. She wondered if Elise thought of her too. She knew her venom created urges that heightened a reaper’s appeal, forcing the infected to yearn for another bite. Layla wondered if the feeding had left a mark on Elise in other ways besides physical.
She turned her face into her pillow, forcing herself to breathe in Mei’s scent and cover any thoughts of Elise. It worked for only a few moments. Then Elise came slipping back into her mind. She always did.
Layla wanted more than just a bite.
She drifted off to sleep with the Saint heiress controlling herthoughts, her essence running through her body. Veins open, heart racing, Layla tumbled headfirst into a pit of vulnerability that only ended with her limbs loosening and heart softening. Elise Saint was a bittersweet entity of destruction and healing against which nothing could be done. Layla was fully stuck with her. She was completely full of Elise. And it scared her.
29
Elise woke up wincing. Sharp, pinching pain traveled through her body as she got ready for the day. Every muscle ached, stiffness locking her joints together with each movement. She could not tell if it was from the chaos of last night’s events, or if it had to do with Layla’s venom still circulating in her body. Elise wanted to blame the latter. But even while her muscles creaked and groaned in pain, agony screaming down her nerves, she craved the feeling of Layla’s fangs in her again and the steady eye contact between them—
“Elise?” Her mother asked.
Elise glanced down. Lost in thought, she had poured her apple juice over her cup and spilled it all over the table. She set the pitcher down, cheeks flaring with an embarrassed heat. “Apologies. I got distracted.” Elise began mopping up the mess with her napkins.
“I’ll say,” her mother muttered. She went back to staring over the Sunday newspaper, eyebrows knitted together. “You certainly seembetter today. No longer ill, though a little absent-minded.”
