27. Theo

Theo

A shuddering snore wakes me, and I panic, flailing wildly at the heavy arm wrapped around me. I am not a hundred-percent sure why I'm panicking, but I do, tearing at the unfamiliar sheets. But in my panic, a familiar smell hits me, spicy and warm, like safety and home.

My racing heart slowly settles, and I blink away the sleepy confusion. The heavy arm tightens around me, and the solid wall of man snuggles closer to my side, a grumpy huff of breath tickling the side of my neck.

Roan . I am in Roan's bed .

It's so strange that in all our time together, I've never seen where he lives. I mean, we've talked about it. He just prefers the tavern. I hope he prefers my house—our house—the most.

In the dim light filtering through the curtains, I can't see much from where I'm pinned next to him, just the cheap bedside cabinets and wardrobe. The generic, fake beechwood timber looks out of place against the white-washed walls and exposed beams. He doesn't even like light-coloured wood. Even the plain navy quilt feels out of place. There is nothing of Roan here, like a stranger's room.

At least in the cocoon of his bed, of him, it feels so calm. So different to the cocoon I last wrapped myself in—sure it was safe , but I was a mess. This morning feels different. Clearer.

Shit. I was kidnapped yesterday.

Again.

Was it yesterday? What day is it? How long was I out? Shouldn't I be freaking out about the kidnapping and not the time?

Dull anxiety leadens my limbs while my fingers and toes tingle. There it is . I can feel the racing of my heart under Roan's muscular weight; it feels like that is the only thing tethering me to this world. Grounding me.

Deep breath in, deep breath out.

Ok. So my ex had been haunting my dreams.

He stalked my nightmares and found me and managed to magic me away to try and force-mate me. Turns out that he was far more powerful than any of us gave him credit for. And then the nabras ate him. The nabras that one hundred-percent talked to me. Again. Or whatever it is that's been happening with me and the creatures of the Woods.

Cool. Easy.

Oh.

And I exploded magic at him.

I forgot that.

I'm grateful that I haven't eaten in Gods knows how long because the memory of the sight and the smell of his burnt flesh turns my stomach dangerously.

Apparently my magic is back? But different? I don't understand what's been happening to me over the past few months. I've felt it growing, but I have all the control of a fae toddler. It's dangerous.

Just ask Darius .

Nope. Nope. We're not doing that. Dr Brordieu is going to have a field day with this. At this rate, I should just buy him the boat and be done with it. Gods knows I'll pay for it anyway with the amount of therapy I'm going to need after this.

At least this time feels different; I don't feel the need to hide. Well, not yet anyway.

I mean, I felt okay when we made our way home from Marieth's, or at least I managed to keep myself together until we got back to the tavern. But then, I'd been raw on the inside. Vulnerable, fragile.

With every deep breath, I mentally catalogue my body and my feelings, a technique I've been working on with the good doctor. Apparently, the first step to good communication, which according to him is a skill I suck at, is knowing yourself.

Do I feel great? No.

Physically, my body is bruised and aching. I must've hit my knees on those creek bed rocks because they are hurting like a bitch. And my chest is aching from those bands that'd pinned me. Not to mention the burns under my arms. How bad a control do you have to have to burn yourself with your own magic?

But mentally? I poke and prod around the edges of my feelings. I feel a little rocky, but it doesn't have that same brittle feeling. This is different. I fought back. I stood up for myself in a way that I never have before. I was different this time.

And to be fair, Darius was scary, but he had nothing on the ancient and terrible awesomeness of Marieth. The leadened feeling in my arms and legs begins to relax slightly, giving me some of the feeling back.

The relief allows me to really revel in the warmth of Roan's bare skin against mine. I don't know how I ended up naked, too, but I'm grateful. I shimmy around so we're pressed chest to chest, my half -hard dick against his belly. At this point, it's just a permanent state of semi-erection whenever I'm near him.

It takes a little wiggling, but I manage to thread my thigh between his, so his cock is pressed against me, too, his thigh trapping my hip in a way that makes me feel secure and claimed. In all my fidgeting, his hand has settled on the small of my back, his fingers stroking there possessively.

He looks younger in his sleep—not that he's old, even if I like to tease him about it. But the laugh lines around his eyes are smooth, and I kind of miss them. I lightly trace where they should be, and then trail my hand over his beard. I love that beard, too. It feels incredible against my skin when he does wicked things to me with his mouth.

My hand keeps moving, trailing over the sensitive tendons of his neck, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake, before I stroke the hard and smooth length of the horn not tucked into the pillow. In his sleep, his breathing increases at my touch, a grunt accentuating the punch of his hips when I grip the base of his horn, jerking it like his cock.

Continuing to tease, I run my fingers through his hair, long and loose, free from its usual bun, before tracing back around his neck and down his wide pecs. His already marvellous skin is even more tanned from all our work out in the sun. Reverently, my hand ghosts over the skin of his pecs, down to the hardness of his stomach, watching the muscles under his skin dance at my touch.

This is the true magic, right here, in this moment between us.

His cock is hidden from my touch, barricaded by our entwined legs, but I can feel it there, stiff and aching against me. My hand skirts back up to his nipples, brushing over the hardening nubs, until they get the better of me, and I give one a hard pinch. I quickly soothe it, rubbing it firmly, but the damage is done. Roan lets out a harsh huff, rearing back slightly, which only rubs his cock harder against me. Almost like it was by design.

A firm swat to my ass has me yelping, but it only makes my skin flush with heat. When his hand squeezes my cheek, grinding me impossibly closer, the flush turns to a fever, electricity sizzling through my veins.

"Brat." The smile on his face is only topped by the affection in his voice. The love . My breath catches in my throat when I look into his dark grey eyes and the emotion there. If I am lucky, I will get to wake to that sight every morning for the rest of my life.

"So, this is your place, huh? It's… not very you."

He barks a laugh, dropping a kiss to my forehead, his hips grinding into me lazily, like he doesn't even notice that he's doing it.

"I told you, this isn't my home. It's just the place where I sleep so I leave the tavern once in a while and don't go insane." His beard tickles the sensitive places on my neck as he trails soft kisses from behind my ear all the way down to my shoulder. Between his mouth and the way his hand is possessively stroking up and down my spine, groping at the flesh of my ass, pulling me to him, my brain has turned to goop. The heavy anxiety in my body is replaced entirely with the consuming, languid weight of wanting.

With a groan, Roan's mouth finds mine, his lips claiming my mouth. I open to him, lust firing all the circuits in my brain when his tongue touches mine, the kiss fire and heat. Helpless against the tide of need, our bodies grind together, seeking the reassurance of our touch, our connection with one another.

Breathing seems like such a petty thing, an unnecessary inconvenience when I have Roan's mouth on me. I would happily drown in his kiss, but my lungs have other ideas, and we part only long enough for a quick panting breath before we are on each other again. Roan falls back, dragging me with him, pulling at me, manhandling me until I'm straddling his waist, writhing and glorying in the friction of my cock trapped between our stomachs.

Our rhythm syncs, our hips moving in a perfect dance, and as I grind down, his hips thrust up, and his cockhead teases my hole. Shudders wrack my spine, only Roan's fingers biting into my flanks keeping me from slamming myself back on to him. Unprepped as I am, that is probably a terrible idea, but in my lust-addled insanity the fantasy of the stretch and the burn makes my already straining cock leak.

The buzz of my orgasm collects at the base of my spine, the tingling flush overwhelming my skin. I look down at Roan, the outrageous strength of him, veins rippling along his skin as he fights to maintain the last vestiges of his control. His eyes are screwed shut, the tendons on his neck tight as he tilts his head back into the pillows beneath.

Needing something to fill my mouth, I lean forward to suck hard on the skin beneath his jaw. Mewling whimpers and grunting breaths fill the otherwise silence of the room—I am so close, devastatingly close.

"Ew!"

"For the love of the Gods"

"Guess he's feeling better then?"

"Don't stop on our account."

The slamming door of the front door being thrown open heralds the ridiculously loud and wholly unnecessary interruption of the people I used to love and care about. As my cock rapidly deflates, and I wave goodbye to the blissful orgasm I had been riding just on the edges of, I sob an exaggerated cry, dropping my face into the hard comfort of Roan's chest.

"You didn't lock the door?!" I feel him dragging the sheet over our bodies to preserve something of our modesty.

There is a snicker somewhere in the room, and whoever it is is very lucky I don't have full control of my new gifts, or they would be roasting like a chestnut right now. Roan, the traitor, just laughs, kissing the side of my head and rolling me off him. Unlike me, he is still half hard, and he traps my thigh across him to keep from sharing too much with our intruders.

"No, no, I did not." He rises on his elbows to level a rather unimpressed look at our friends.

"Have you lot heard of knocking?" The barrage of noises in their defence, sends me diving under the pillows.

"Can you at least give us privacy to get dressed then?" Like the mature adult he is, he attempts to reason with the posse of clowns invading his living room.

"No." Edith sounds far too close as she declines Roan's request. The bed dips beside me and her herby smell permeates the pillow I have wrapped firmly over me. "You all good under there?" Her hand rests on my back, a subtle flow of pleasant, healing energy radiating from her palm. For all her wildness and eccentricities, Edith truly cares about us.

Well, me at least.

I pull my head out of its hiding place to look at her in her smirking face. There is a violent red blush to my cheeks, and she is enjoying it far too much.

"I would be much better if you would all clear out so we could finish up. Or at least get dressed."

"Ugh, gross." The disgust from my brother wafts across the room. Awesome. Tor saw me riding my boyfriend like a pony. Why couldn't the nabras have eaten me? Edith pats my cheek, her eyes dancing with laughter.

"You have exactly three minutes. And then I demand a show."

"Get out, Edith, or I'll finally do the maths on your tab." Roan's threat holds very little weight. Nobody, being or otherwise, has the powers to calculate something of that magnitude. But it works, and she stands, sniffing.

"Fine. We'll leave. But be quick." With a flurry of black lace, she rounds everyone back out of the cottage.

"Don't suppose you have any pants I could borrow?" I headbutt Roan's chest affectionately, nuzzling in. His fingers wind their way into my tangled curls, massaging my skull for a moment.

"Yeah, they'll be a bit big, but we can make it work." I kiss his chest, unable to resist the open expanse of skin, before I roll off the bed.

"We always do, babe, we always do."

***

Apparently, we were lucky, if you can call it that. From what Seff has said, we could have been woken up before dawn if my brother and Edith had their way. They were, from what everyone has said, chomping at the bit to invade Roan's house before the sun had even cracked the horizon. Seff, Caelan, and Mauvy struggled to keep them away for as long as they had.

They couldn't have held them off a couple more minutes, though?

Roan and I dress quickly and make our way to the tavern to meet our friends. Because of the early hour, the tavern is empty of anyone except for an older fae couple staying in one of the rooms. They are happily ensconced in one of the booth nooks and wave when they see me, both pulling me in for a hug to welcome me back, safe and whole.

The wife, Jacinta, holds my hands tightly in hers as she gushes her relief at my safe return. Even her husband claps me on the back repeatedly. I only met them once before, but they are so effusive in their well wishes. It makes me blush painfully until I manage to escape and get to our table.

"Our" being everyone minus Seldon, who is still asleep in one of the employee rooms. They used to be known as the servants quarters, but Mauvy and Roan nixed the name when they took over. It's where Mauvy's rooms are, and any of the staff can sleep there if they are working a late shift and don't want to drive home.

It was a flurry of crushing, squeezing hugs and whispers of gratitude and love when we all reconvened. It had taken more than a moment to pull ourselves together, but we managed, eventually crowding around one of the long wooden tables, clutching cups of coffee.

While everyone had been interrupting my morning orgasm, Mauvy had been busy cooking up a feast—her second of the morning, apparently. Bacon, eggs, toast, and fruit are laid out in front of us. I surreptitiously shoved the plate of bacon away from me, the smell uncomfortably reminiscent of the scent of Darius's burnt flesh. The memory was a little too fresh. Instead, I take a sip of the coffee in my hands, letting the warmth fill me while we wait for Edith to finish her mouthful of food and say what she has to say.

She makes the hand rolling gesture like she is hurrying and swallows with a big gulp.

"So yesterday." She pauses again for a slurp of coffee. "I think you have some explaining to do."

Butterflies swarm in my stomach when all eyes fall on me. My brother raises an eyebrow, and I can see he is literally biting his tongue so he doesn't jump in. Seff has no such reservations. Shooting a frown at Edith, he leans towards me.

"But only if you're up to it. Yesterday would have been traumatic, and we don't want to push you." He might have been speaking to me, but the words were definitely directed at Edith. She just scoffs and waves off Seff's rebuke. I smile at them both and lean into Roan next to me on the bench seat.

"It's fine. I, uh, yeah. Darius is—was—my ex." I heave a sigh, trying to untangle my thoughts.

I don't even know where to begin; it all feels like a tangled mess. But then Roan's big hand squeezes above my knee, and I look up to meet his eyes. His smile eases the nervous twisting inside me, the weight of him beside me tethering me to right now, reminding me that no matter what I have to say, they and, most importantly, he will still love me.

And so I tell them. Everything. At length.

From the first day I ran into Darius at the university, to our shitty relationship, to my nightmares and his messages, to my rekindled powers, and, eventually, after approximately a thousand hours of talking, everything that happened at the top of the Falls.

Halfway through my monologue, Seldon joins us at the table, still half-asleep. He gives me a half hug around my shoulders and kisses my head before dropping onto one of the vacant stools. Once he has a mug of coffee, he joins the others, listening intently. The mages follow not too long after, Tarook, Alain, and Alesander nodding while the others pull another table closer so they can listen to my story.

Every so often, someone tries to interject with a question, but they are quickly smacked down. More than one person threatens to reanimate Darius's remains so they can kill him again.

But most importantly, I manage to get it out. All of it out.

By the time I am done, I am emotionally wrung out, tears staining my cheeks, the bruises on my chest aching, the burns itching. Roan's fingers are digging hard enough into my thigh that I know that I'm going to have more bruises there, too, but I don't pry his fingers off just yet. There is silence when I'm done talking, everyone processing the avalanche of information I just dumped on them.

"Father must be pissed." There is a cheeky glint to Tor's face that I can't help but mirror.

"It's almost enough to make me want to go back and see him. I can't even imagine Mother's reaction." My cheeks hurt from smiling, my body not quite ready for mirth just yet. But it's worth it to see the pleasure in my brother's face when he chuckles.

"Setting aside your previously terrible taste in men, how did Darius manage to mask his magic so well?" Edith's voice is hard, like Darius's abilities are a personal slight.

I am saved from answering when Tarook clears his throat from the mages' end table. "I think I can answer that one, if you will, Theo?" My head bounces like a bobblehead, eager to get the attention off myself.

Tarook nods gracefully, rearranging his body so his cloak swirls around him melodramatically. "Alesander managed to recover some items during Theo's rescue. There was a book of magic there. Old magic . The kind thought to be lost with the clans that once resided here. But magic is never truly lost, only ever hidden. Darius descended from those mages, and his line had practised in secret.

"Between the knowledge of his father's people and the magic shown to him by his witch mother, Darius would have been indescribably powerful. There were notes, accountings of spells in that book, not just those he had inherited but those he had collected along the way…. When I say that we are lucky that he used his powers for something as asininely mundane as money , I mean we are lucky . He could have wreaked untold havoc not just in this land but across the world."

My mouth drops open at Tarook's fervent warning, and I'm not the only one. Collectively, we exchange glances, a ripple of disquiet moving through us all.

Until Edith leans forward, a leer on her face.

"And what, my darling Tarook, would a girl have to do to have a little read of this book?" She bats her eyes at the Head Mage, biting her lip provocatively. And to her credit, despite being the personification of chaos energy, it works for her.

It's the same uncomfortable feeling you get when you realise other people think your mum is hot.

Magic wafts off her in waves. Tarook, to his credit, stands firm against her charms, his angular face contorting into a genial smile.

"Not on your life, witch. We just narrowly missed one apocalypse—we're not risking another." Across from me, Seff's eyes go comically wide, and the colour drains from his face.

"You're messing around, right?" Tarook winks at Seff's horrified face, a not-at-all-comforting gesture.

"Am I? Fortunately, he did not seem to possess the skill or wit to realise what power he really had with that book."

Our group murmurs uncomfortably for a moment, individually processing just how bad things could have been. Only Seldon remains unaffected, but I think he may be sleeping with his head on the table.

"What about the explodey ball thing Theo did? You guys got answers for that?" Nope, he's awake. He props his elbow on the table and his chin on his hand.

It isn't Tarook that answers this time but Alain. I'd avoided him where possible. He seems nice enough, but he is always watching me intently, as though he is cataloguing every single detail of my being. It's unnerving.

"Actually, I do. I told you the garden was good for you, Theo." His eyes bore into mine, willing me to make the connection.

"It's the earth, right?" Earth is Alain's element after all. His smile is crooked due to a scar on his cheek but wide all the same.

"Yes! The earth. By caring for it, nurturing it, it allowed you to foster that connection to your magic, the magic of the Whisper Woods. The fae may have stolen your unique gift and most of your power, but it was like a seed in your spirit. It just had to be brought into being." He pauses, rearranging his emerald robes around him in a pompous kind of way. The mages are big on using their robes for dramatic effect, I've noticed. Once he's satisfied, he waves his hand in the air, gesturing grandly. "It also helps that the Woods blessed you. Rather like it did Inigo."

The Woods blessed me? What is he on about? My brain scrambles to catch up. Mages aren't known for being direct about things, and it is very early after a rather traumatic day. Something finally connects, and I slap the table.

"It's the creature thing, isn't it?" Several of the mages laugh at me, like I'm a child solving a simple maths equation.

"What creature thing?" Caelan interjects just as Tarook confirms my guess. I wince at the incredulous looks around the table, worrying at my lip with my teeth, completely unsure how to explain this one.

I'm temporarily saved from having to answer by the arrival of a vaguely familiar-looking man. The conversation stops immediately, everybody's attention swivelling to the black-haired man coming down the stairs of the tavern. He seems coolly unaffected by everyone's attention, his focus entirely on Seff's back.

"Who is that?" Edith perks up as Seff turns to face the man. The three of us—me, Seldon, and Seff—all seem to recognise him at the same time, Seff turns a rather brilliant red colour as he turns to face him.

"I know you!" This is just too much fun. I jump to my feet excitedly. "You're the guy from the club!" I shake Roan's shoulder, to get his attention, but he is too frustrated at the interruption to care. Seldon slaps the table, all too ready to shit-stir Seff with me. "Yes! Oh, my Gods. What is he doing here?"

"Wasn't he here for the search yesterday, too?" Mauvy throws in distractedly. Well, that certainly is a bit of information. Seff is barely paying any attention to us. He's entirely focused on the guy who is taking our delight at his arrival with good humour despite being scary as fuck. He's not exactly big or intimidating, but there is something about him that definitely gives the impression of power.

Roan, who is far too close to going on a rampage out of sheer frustration, tugs me back into my seat, and I go willingly just to snuggle up close to him again. I can feel his tension easing as I tuck myself in close.

"Hello. Yes, that was me at Slash." The man nods his head in greeting, and, when Seff turns back around in his seat, his hand stays on Seff's shoulder. "When Seff got the news yesterday, I drove him here. Naturally, I stayed to assist as much as I could. I'm glad to see you are safe and well."

"Yeah, well, it wasn't exactly my first time being kidnapped and almost murdered. You could say I'm an old hand at it by now." No one seems to appreciate my flippant response, judging by the curses around me, except for the new guy. I can see the small quirk of a smile in the corner of his mouth.

"Ah, yes, well, everyone has to have their hobbies. Though I can see your loved ones here would probably prefer you give this one a rest." A chuckle escapes me. I like this guy.

"Yeah. Should probably retire for a bit. Anyway, what was your name again? Seff forgot to introduce us."

I take pity on my poor, stressed Roan and try for a redirect. My brother isn't holding up any better with the interruption. Seff flips me off in response to my little dig, and so I return it in kind.

"I am Rafe Miyares." He gives another little bowing nod.

"Pleased to meet you, Rafe. I'm Theo. The guy glaring at you is my brother Tor, and the other one glaring at you, the one with the beard-seriously guys?" I whisper-yell the last bit, but Tor only rolls his eyes. "Is Caelan. The one eyeballing you down there is Edith. Then you'll remember Seldon from the club, and then there's Mauvy and Roan. They own the Black Stump here. And this is Tarook, Alesander, and Alain, our guests here at the Black Stump. Obviously, I don't need to introduce you to Seff here." I point to everyone in turn, sticking my tongue out at Seff when he flips me off again. Roan's exasperated huff tickles my hair as he tugs me closer into him and kisses my head.

There is a flicker of recognition in Rafe and the mages' eyes as they are introduced, but the moment passes when Rafe returns Seff's phone and heads upstairs.

But only after kissing Seff stupid at the table.

"What was that?!" Edith screeches as soon as Rafe disappears up the stairs—definitely still within hearing distance, though.

My brother, the absolute spoilsport, cuts her off before she can grill Seff any further, pulling us back to the original conversation. The one about me.

"You were saying something, Theo. Something about talking to fucking creatures?"

I take a bracing sip of my coffee before I begin again, trying to find the best way to explain it.

"Uh, so I can kind of hear creatures?" I look to Tarook and Alain for confirmation. They shrug and nod—this is probably the best way to explain it. "It's not a voice exactly but an impression. Anyway, it's a thing, a new thing. That I can do. Or experience."

"Godsdammit, Theo!" Tor slaps the table, making everyone jump, his frustration boiling over. I keep my eyes trained on my brother, who has a rather pink flush to his pointed ears. "You can talk to creatures, and you don't tell anyone ? I felt kinda bad about not knowing about the Darius thing, like I'd let you down, but honestly, bro, your communication sucks . Why didn't you mention this to literally anyone ? What if it was dangerous?!"

Caelan pulls Tor into an embrace, kissing his temple and rubbing his back. Roan is still as a statue next to me. The arm that had been secured around my shoulders drops. He folds his hands in his lap, his back rigid. He'd flinched at my brother's words, though. I think I've pissed him off. My face heats, the rush of blood making my neck itchy.

"I'm sorry. I know. It was stupid. I just didn't… I didn't want to face it? Any of it? Like if I didn't talk about it, none of it was real. Darius, the message, the whole relationship , and then my powers returning, or changing, or whatever. And I didn't want anyone to see me that way again… you know. All broken and different and stuff… I, uh. It's a thing. I'm working on it." I drop my hand under the table to squeeze Roan's thigh. He presses his calf against me, but that's it.

"Well, that's enough bombshells for me this morning." Edith stands, snagging a piece of toast from the picked-over breakfast trays.

"Theo, my darling, I am very glad that you are well after your ordeal. And I want to learn the exploding fire thing. I have a few people I would like to practise on." She hurries around the table to give me a squeezing hug from behind. "I will see you all later." We watch her leave, and Mauvy turns to the mages.

"She's going for the book, you know that, right?" Caelan points out to the completely unconcerned mages.

"Indeed, we do. But never worry. We're a step ahead of the witch. But we, too, must be away. Things to do, elements to master, and all that." With that, and a dramatic flurry of cloaks, Alain and Tarook leave, too.

Tor shoves himself away from the table to pace around the space between the benches. He mumbles to himself, arguing his own points. And then he turns sharply on his heel, stalking his way around to my seat.

For one horrifying moment, I look at my brother's staggeringly handsome and angry face towering above me, and I think he's going to hit me. Instead, he reaches for my shoulders, yanking me upright and hauling me to him in a breath-stealing hug.

"I am so fucking mad at you, Theo. You need to talk to me. Tell me shit. Not so I can protect you or baby you. But because I'm your brother, and I love you, and we're the only family we have left." I think Caelan and Roan and the others at the table would violently disagree with his fervent whisper in my ear, but I let it go. "But no matter what, baby brother, I am grateful you're safe. That you're here."

He leans back, holding my shoulders tight. Tears glisten in his eyes, making their vivid blue turn icy. My own tears are only being held back by the tight seal I have on my lips, so I nod and pull him back in for a tighter hug.

Seff, ever the snuggle slut, and never one to let an opportunity for a group hug pass, launches himself around the table to wrap his beefy arms around us. Caelan and Roan join the pile next, followed by Seldon, who I think might be trying to feel up my brother just a little. Mauvy takes the longest to join in because she drags a stool over so she isn't just hugging man-butt.

It's a different kind of cocoon from the one I made myself after my first kidnapping. Unrestrained love wraps around us all like a bond. Safe. Welcome.

Home.