little so I’m blocking her from Laylen’s view. “Are you possessed again, or something?” I lower my head and study her eyes, which are as captivating as ever, but look a little hollow.
However, then she gives me a tentative smile and she looks like herself again, but I can feel that something’s off, like I could when I first woke up from my possession and knew what she was thinking.
“I have Royal Fey blood, Alex,” she says, in a duh tone. “I can use the Cornu Lepore to control the Fey in the Fey Realm. We can free Aleesa and Aislin because I can make the Faeries let them go.” She swings the chain around on her fingers with a proud smile on her face.
“No,” I say, shaking my head and grabbing onto her hand. “No freaking way. Besides, I wasn’t even planning on you going to the Faerie Realm. You can stay here where I know you’re safe.”
Her expression falls and she slips her hand from mine. “You don’t get a say in this.”
“Like hell I don’t,” I argue, seizing her by the waist. “I watched you for the last few days, possessed by a freaking evil queen who has Fey blood in her.” I tug her roughly towards me and she gasps as I lean in, breathing hotly on her neck. “And there’s no way I’m letting you go anywhere near the Fey.”
She huffs a frustrated breath, but she’s trembling in my arms. “Alex, this is the perfect plan—the easiest one to get Aislin and Aleesa back. Please, don’t make this hard.” She wiggles her arm up between us and then places her hand on my cheek. “You can be right by me the whole time. You can…” She bites her lip nervously as she glances at Laylen and Evan, then leans in, dropping her voice low enough that only I can hear her. “You can even kiss me the entire time to make sure I’m still me.”
“You think you can bribe me?” I ask, trying to sound firm, but the idea of kissing her the entire time is so God damn appealing.
She lets her lip pop free and stares into my eyes. “Just let me do it or I’ll… I’ll never be able to forgive myself for everything I did.”
“That was Helena,” I remind her. “You can’t feel guilty about the stuff she made you do.”
“It’s not that easy.”
Her eyes beg me to cooperate and even though I really don’t want to, I find myself saying, “Fine.”
Shutting her eyes, Gemma kisses my cheek. “Thank you,” she whispers in my ear and I shut my eyes, fighting the urge to pick her up and lock her in the dungeon until I can fix all this and know she’s safe.
Evan lets out a yawn, stretching his arms above his head, and then blinks his eyes repeatedly. “I’m going to have to get a quick nap if you guys want me to be a part of this.” He opens and closes his hand and a flame starts to burn, but then sizzles weakly. “I’m drained and my powers are pretty much useless right now.”
I let out a breath, glancing at the window and the blackness outside. “How long of a nap?”
Evan shrugs. “Like an hour, tops.”
I hate waiting, yet I want to wait because I don’t want Gemma to do it alone. I’m extremely conflicted, but in the end the more power we have, the better. “An hour,” I say. “And then we’ll go.”
Laylen, who pretty much never sleeps, heads for the doorway. “I’m going to go get that book about the Lost Souls and see if I can find a way to send them back. After we get Aislin, we’re going to have to move onto that problem.”
Gemma lets out a breath and mutters, “I wish that we didn’t have to deal with so many damn problems.”
Laylen and Evan wander out of the room and Gemma watches them leave, staring at the doorway even after they disappear. Worry courses through her and I can almost feel it inside me.
“You know you don’t have to do it?” I try to reassure her and calm her down. “I can go and fix it for you. As long as Aislin comes back, it’s really all the
However, then she gives me a tentative smile and she looks like herself again, but I can feel that something’s off, like I could when I first woke up from my possession and knew what she was thinking.
“I have Royal Fey blood, Alex,” she says, in a duh tone. “I can use the Cornu Lepore to control the Fey in the Fey Realm. We can free Aleesa and Aislin because I can make the Faeries let them go.” She swings the chain around on her fingers with a proud smile on her face.
“No,” I say, shaking my head and grabbing onto her hand. “No freaking way. Besides, I wasn’t even planning on you going to the Faerie Realm. You can stay here where I know you’re safe.”
Her expression falls and she slips her hand from mine. “You don’t get a say in this.”
“Like hell I don’t,” I argue, seizing her by the waist. “I watched you for the last few days, possessed by a freaking evil queen who has Fey blood in her.” I tug her roughly towards me and she gasps as I lean in, breathing hotly on her neck. “And there’s no way I’m letting you go anywhere near the Fey.”
She huffs a frustrated breath, but she’s trembling in my arms. “Alex, this is the perfect plan—the easiest one to get Aislin and Aleesa back. Please, don’t make this hard.” She wiggles her arm up between us and then places her hand on my cheek. “You can be right by me the whole time. You can…” She bites her lip nervously as she glances at Laylen and Evan, then leans in, dropping her voice low enough that only I can hear her. “You can even kiss me the entire time to make sure I’m still me.”
“You think you can bribe me?” I ask, trying to sound firm, but the idea of kissing her the entire time is so God damn appealing.
She lets her lip pop free and stares into my eyes. “Just let me do it or I’ll… I’ll never be able to forgive myself for everything I did.”
“That was Helena,” I remind her. “You can’t feel guilty about the stuff she made you do.”
“It’s not that easy.”
Her eyes beg me to cooperate and even though I really don’t want to, I find myself saying, “Fine.”
Shutting her eyes, Gemma kisses my cheek. “Thank you,” she whispers in my ear and I shut my eyes, fighting the urge to pick her up and lock her in the dungeon until I can fix all this and know she’s safe.
Evan lets out a yawn, stretching his arms above his head, and then blinks his eyes repeatedly. “I’m going to have to get a quick nap if you guys want me to be a part of this.” He opens and closes his hand and a flame starts to burn, but then sizzles weakly. “I’m drained and my powers are pretty much useless right now.”
I let out a breath, glancing at the window and the blackness outside. “How long of a nap?”
Evan shrugs. “Like an hour, tops.”
I hate waiting, yet I want to wait because I don’t want Gemma to do it alone. I’m extremely conflicted, but in the end the more power we have, the better. “An hour,” I say. “And then we’ll go.”
Laylen, who pretty much never sleeps, heads for the doorway. “I’m going to go get that book about the Lost Souls and see if I can find a way to send them back. After we get Aislin, we’re going to have to move onto that problem.”
Gemma lets out a breath and mutters, “I wish that we didn’t have to deal with so many damn problems.”
Laylen and Evan wander out of the room and Gemma watches them leave, staring at the doorway even after they disappear. Worry courses through her and I can almost feel it inside me.
“You know you don’t have to do it?” I try to reassure her and calm her down. “I can go and fix it for you. As long as Aislin comes back, it’s really all the
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