Page 98 of To Crave Madly
“I’ll get you back for this. Just you wait, Elissa.”
“I’m sure you will,” she said airily as she left the room. “I’m sure you will.”
***
This was it. I was perched at the top of the stairs, heart pounding in my chest, waiting to go down and enter the portal room. I’d never travelled by portal before but, if I could shadow jump, I was certain that I could make it through a portal without throwing my guts up. I could hear them all talking in the foyer and my heart skipped a beat. I was nervous. Like really fucking nervous, and I’d fought demons and rogue mages. Surely, I could walk down the stairs without falling down flat on my face?
Deep breath.
“What’s taking so long? I thought you said she was ready, Elissa?”
Jasper’s voice trailed up the stairway. I didn’t miss the impatient bite to his words.
Another deep breath. Just for good measure.
My hand gripped the banister, and I started the descent to the foyer. I didn’t remember there being so many stairs before. Oh, god, why were there so many stairs?
“Here she is,” Elissa called as I came into view. The men turned around, and I swear you could have heard a pin drop.
Every pair of eyes was on me as I came down the last few steps to meet Jasper at the bottom. Elissa stood smiling, Jasper looked like he wanted to devour me, Fenris had his jaw on the floor and Alec rolled his bottom lip between his teeth as he looked me up and down. Torsten had managed to get his hands on a suit and wow, did he look good. Even Cassian seemed to appreciate my looks this evening. Well, he wasn’t scowling at me, so I’d count that as a victory.
I’d never felt so sexy. The way these men looked at me had my stomach flip-flopping and my heart fluttering in my chest. And sweet mother of all donuts, these men in suits were more than my already throbbing centre could stand. And I had be around them all evening. How was I ever going to survive?
Jasper held his arm out to me, and I hooked my own through his elbow. He leant down and placed a soft kiss on my cheek before whispering in my ear. “You look ravishing. It’s going to be hard not to think about undressing you and fucking you senseless in some dark corridor all night.”
My foot stumbled underneath me but Jasper’s reflexes had him gripping my waist and pulling me flush against him.
“I can see you like that idea,” he muttered under his breath. “I can hear your heart racing.”
The heat from his fingers burned through the fabric of my dress and the soft rumble from his chest when he spoke had my heart pitter-pattering like crazy.
“Save it for later, you two. We’ve got work to do,” Alec called from behind us. “Unless you fancy letting me join in. Then I’m all for delaying the trip.”
Jasper let out a snarl and that was the moment ruined. I narrowed my eyes at Alec and flipped him off. The guy was such an asshat sometimes. Always choosing the wrong moment to make a flippant comment. I didn’t say anything back to him because I knew he was just trying to deflect us away from asking about his curse, and I didn’t want to torture him any more than he was already torturing himself.
“Come on. Let’s go,” Jasper ordered as we all walked to the portal. It was in a room at the back of the main building. The room was bare except for a stone archway that sat in the centre. It was an impressive looking thing that reached the ceiling, and it was carved with intricate symbols that I didn’t understand.
Fenris stepped forward and started chanting some strange words, no doubt a spell to open the doorway to the Crowe Residence. I could see Fenris was nervous. His mouth was set in a tight line and his posture was stiff and unyielding. I resolutely looked away. It wasn’t my place to worry about him. I’d made that clear with Elissa earlier and I wasn’t going to let her down.
A shimmer of silver filled the edges between the walls of the arch and the floor. It reminded me of the mercurial shine to Torsten’s eyes. It had the same mesmerising swirl to it, and I couldn’t help but look over at him. Unlike Fenris, he’d kept his shoulder-length locks down and dishevelled. It gave him a wild look and my body reacted to the sight of him. My core throbbed and I had to clench my thighs to stop the flow of my torturous thoughts. The corner of his mouth tipped up into a delicious smirk and I could tell he knew exactly what I was thinking.
If I survived this night, it would be a fucking miracle, I thought as I stepped into the portal with Jasper. The world tipped precariously, and my stomach roiled at the spinning sensation. How the fuck could this be worse than shadow jumping?
Chapter 35
LORI
The world righted itself with a flash, followed by a thud. I was so disorientated. Travelling by portal felt like the world rushing by at a million miles a minute before coming to a sudden halt. My organs still felt like they were back at the base and my limbs felt like lead. Thankfully, Jasper managed to keep hold of me as we came through the other side, so I didn’t collapse in a mess in the arrival hall of the Yule Gathering. That would have been embarrassing. Especially since there were so many people about, and I wanted to make a good impression on them. I was a mage and Elissa said I was worthy of a place here. These were my people and I wanted to have the option to belong somewhere if I ever needed it.
So, once I felt like the parts of my body were in their right places, I took a deep breath, held my head high and walked towards the ballroom.
When we passed through the large double doors, I felt a soft breeze caress my skin followed by a little prickling sensation.
Magic.
I could smell it on the air as well, like burnt toffee and apples. Sugary and sweet.
“It’s a naming enchantment,” Fenris whispered in my ear. “It will announce your arrival to the gathering. It will also put your group in order of importance or rank, so the rest of the guests know who to talk to first.”
