Souls of Fire (35 page)

Persephone,
she responded calmly.

He had been right, she could read him back.

Let’s try this again, who are you?

Persephone,
she repeated evenly
.

Apparently she wouldn’t admit to being anyone else. There was no sense in pushing her, it wouldn’t do. Aidan tried a different angle.

What do you want? 
he demanded.

I want … I just want to be happy
.

What makes you happy?
he wanted to know.

You do,
she said, then suddenly seemed to catch herself.

No, no … I meant … Aaron … I’m so confused…

Suddenly her cheeks had turned a bright shade of red. She was blushing! She seemed so innocent. What the fuck was going on?

Morrigan,
Aidan tried again,
Morrigan, I want to speak with you…

I’m sorry,
Persephone answered,
there really is only me.

That can’t be true, I know she’s there … she is you … stop trying to manipulate me … stop lying.

I’m not lying! This is me! This is the only me you’re ever going to get!

Aidan said nothing … he was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that she seemed so innocent. What would it take for her to actually show her true self?

You think I didn’t wish I were a powerful witch right about now? 
Persephone continued, her voice now filled with anger and contempt.

Do you think I want to feel so helpless and cowed? I’m pathetic … I can’t even take care of myself … can’t stop anyone from continually pushing me around!

Do you think I like being pinned to walls and mattresses? You were supposed to be here to protect me, to keep me from becoming ill! You promised your father that you could do this, that you could be objective. You’re betraying your father. You’re betraying me!

If I had one ounce of power within my grasp, I’d blow your sorry ass right off this bed for the way you’re acting!

How am I acting?
Aidan managed through his indignation at her thoughts. She was trying to pin it all on him, the manipulative lass.

You’re acting like a horny school-boy. You’re trying to justify getting close to me, pretending you’re merely doing your duty, you self-righteous ass. When we both know that you can’t help yourself, I’ve seen the way you look at me … the lust in your eyes…

Aidan’s hand tightened on her wrists, the words she had thrown at him hitting home more than he cared to admit! She had managed to see right through him. She had bested him; he wasn’t one to be bested … he never had been…

You’re right,
Aidan finally admitted softly, he could no longer see any sense in denying it. Absently he found his fingers playing with strands of her flaming-red hair.

You’re playing with fire,
Persephone warned.

Aidan looked down into his palm, the red curls starkly contrasting against his tanned skin.

So, don’t burn me,
his mind whispered to her, and before he knew what he was doing, unable to resist her any longer, and needing to vent his confusion and need, he pulled her toward him, his hand cradling her head, his lips on hers, teeth tugging on her bottom lip, urging her to open up.

Struggling against him at first, his touch eventually managed to reel her in. As a surrendering moan escaped her, her lips opened up under his, inviting him in. Aidan’s stomach was in knots as their tongues touched, hot and liquid desire rushed through him, burning a path down his body.

So she had burned him after all, he thought vaguely, lost in her arms. He was drowning in her, unable to pull himself out from under the waves of passion rolling over him.

Yes, take him,
Aidan heard a voice, Persephone’s voice, but she seemed to be talking to herself. This voice had a different quality to it, though. It sounded dark and forbidding … foreign.

Persephone’s arms suddenly broke free of his grasp. Instead of freeing herself and getting away from him, she wriggled closer into his body, her hands clutching at his hair and pulling him deeper into her embrace, her body pressed up against his, her mouth hot and desperate against his, their panting breaths mingling, out of control.

With a desperate effort, born out of the sudden realization what he was doing and that his father would be furious with him, Aidan managed to free himself from her clutches, and hurriedly jumped off the bed, putting a ― hopefully safe enough ― distance between them.

By the anguished and guilty expression that suddenly covered Persephone’s face, Aidan guessed that she must be thinking about her feelings for Aaron and how his own brother had just managed to make her betray him.

“Are you satisfied? Did you get what you wanted? Can you leave me be now? Leave me be now … please … just leave me alone …,” Persephone begged, her voice tormented.

Aidan watched in shock as Persephone suddenly started to cry, her whole body racked by her weeping.

Aidan was powerless against the picture of misery Persephone presented. Against his will, his heart went out to her, and he suddenly found himself wanting to hold her close and soothe her … but how could he when it was his fault that she was crying? He had pushed, and pushed, until she had given in. He had made her cry.

Something had just shifted inside of him, and Aidan was acutely aware of the dangerous position he now found himself in. The vulnerability she was showing made him forget about the darkness inside of her, and he wanted nothing more than to kiss her again, something he knew he must avoid at all cost.

His father had not cautioned him for nothing, and he had just gotten a taste of the very deep water he would be in if he ever touched her again. He had no choice but to stay away from her, leaving her miserable and shaking on her bed. What a hero he was!

Heading back to his side of the room, he threw himself onto his bed, pulled the covers up and over his head and tried to drown out Persephone’s sobs.

Were her tears for real, or was she so devious and cunning that she could pull off such a convincing act without even blinking?

She had managed to completely reel him in. She had let him see her innocent and vulnerable side, making him feel guilty for making her cry.

He had to hand it to her. She was good! She was really good, and he was in over his head!

If he wasn’t careful, he would be the one destroying the world he had vowed to protect. And the blame would be all his.

He had assured his father that there was no chance in hell he would ever be tempted by her. He had been too weak to admit the truth.

His mind in turmoil, Aidan only fell asleep as the rising sun chased away the last remnants of darkness…

Chapter 15
*
Void

M
y eyes felt tired, heavy and swollen when I opened them the next morning. Dawn had set in before I had managed to fall asleep. I had lain awake for hours, hot tears silently running down my cheeks, dampening the silk pillow underneath.

Now I found myself squinting at the sunlight shining in my eyes. It seemed I had gotten no more than two or maybe three hours of sleep.

With the force of an atomic bomb, the events of the past night suddenly rushed back to me. I had crossed a line I hadn’t even known was there. If I had, maybe I could have toed the line. But he had taken me completely by surprise.

From the moment I had met him, he had behaved in a hostile and disdainful manner toward me. There hadn’t been the slightest indication that he found me the least bit attractive or would even
want 
to get close to me.

Then, I thought I might have detected a tiny spark of interest in his eyes when I came in from the bathroom, but a split second later he had gazed away from me, bored.

So the dream we had shared had come as quite a shock to me. His lips would not have caressed my skin, would not have sought to touch my own if he hadn’t wanted me. His dream must have been a reflection of his subconscious desire for me. Maybe it had surprised him as well.

If what Malcolm had said about the curse was true, and it really was created by the most powerful magic, then odds were Aidan had not had the slightest chance of fighting against the seed of desire the curse had planted in him.

It appeared the power of the curse had outmaneuvered Aidan’s animosity toward me ― even if he despised himself for it, he would act upon the desire within.

If that was the case, then he would not be able to resist me for long, and I would once again find myself in an impossible situation. Or, more precisely, an impossibly impossible situation!

Actually, I was already there! It didn’t get more impossible than it already was. I had felt attracted to Aidan from the moment I had seen him. How could I not? He looked just like Aaron, beautiful and strong.

A voice in the back of my head, one I tried to ignore, had even thought he looked better than Aaron. I suspected it had to do with the very tightly fitting black leather uniform he wore, and the aura of power and danger that surrounded him.

The thrill I had felt when he had pinned me to the mattress, his deep blue eyes burning into mine … Just thinking about it made me shudder.

In spite of the hate, anger and crudeness he directed toward me, and though I had pretended to detest his presence, I hadn’t been able to help feeling light-headed at his nearness.

The weight of his body on mine…

His touch sending shivers down my spine…

Making my heart race…

Butterflies in my stomach…

When his tongue had slid into my ear, my body had shaken violently.

And when we had kissed…

I had been so into him, had wanted him so badly. I had never felt so weak in the knees before, I had never wanted anyone so badly … not even Aaron!

The attraction and the pull I felt toward Aidan was even more dangerous than what I felt for his brother, and it made me want to betray Aaron, the man I had fallen in love with.

Now, I was so confused at my own reaction that I could no longer tell which way was up and which way down. I felt mortified at the betrayal I hadn’t thought I was capable of.

I found myself reeling from the desire I felt for Aidan, even though we had not even connected on an emotional level. I didn’t even know who he was! The position I now found myself in represented a whole new kind of crazy.

I was caught in the clutches of both Aaron and Aidan, which spelled disaster on a whole new level.

Suddenly the threat to the world had become twice as large, the temptation to stray from the path of righteousness twice as great.

Two brothers … two men with the power to pull me into darkness, and I didn’t have the slightest idea what to do about it!

Slowly turning around, I could see the rumpled covers of Aidan’s empty bed. He had apparently snuck out before I had awoken. That was more than fine with me. I was in no mood, at all, for another confrontation ― of any kind.

Throwing my legs over the side of the bed, I lingered on its edge, taking a moment to stretch before getting up.

The sunlight filtering through the large window next to my four-poster illuminated the space where I sat, managing to heat the wooden floorboards beneath my bare feet and infusing my body with soothing warmth.

Walking toward an impressively large wooden wardrobe with elaborate carvings, I opened the door and took a peek inside.

Malcolm had conjured beautiful and tasteful underwear, everyday clothing, as well as dresses for fancy occasions in my size.

I had been amazed to see the beautiful garments. He had impeccable taste, and I had everything my heart could desire, and some things my heart hadn’t even known existed. He had outdone himself. He had even added matching shoes.

Hastily changing into a fresh pair of undergarments, blue jeans and a nice snug red cashmere sweater, I then donned a pair of low-heeled red ankle boots and headed for the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair, and to take care of other necessities.

Malcolm had told me the night before that we would start my magical training that day, and that I should come into the dining room for breakfast as soon as I was ready.

I was sure there was a time schedule I would have to follow in future, but it seemed he was offering me a laid-back first day so that I could adjust more slowly to my new circumstances.

Arriving at the dining room several minutes later, I saw that the table was only occupied by one other person, Malcolm. Everybody else seemed to have gone about their business, and he had apparently waited for me to arrive.

“Good morning,” Malcolm said cheerily.

Yikes, he seemed to be in a good mood. I honestly couldn’t say the same. I was seriously sleep deprived and felt like I had been punched in the gut and/or hit by a car and rolled over several times.

“Morning,” was all I managed to mumble.

But it seemed Malcolm was alright with sitting in silence while reading his paper. He actually smiled a bit at my tired entrance and seemed to be able to tell that I hadn’t gotten too much sleep.

Well, judging by the appearance of the face that had stared at me through the mirror this morning when I had gotten ready, I could see that he would have noticed.

I had managed to neatly arrange my hair, but there was absolutely nothing I could do about my face ― well, at least nothing short of using magic maybe.

My eyes were somewhat bloodshot and still slightly swollen, and there were dark bruises underneath them. My lips were a bit swollen as well, though I guessed it could be for other reasons.

Reasons I did
so
not want to get into at that moment, pushing the thought immediately out of my mind.

I felt grateful for not having to entertain Malcolm at the breakfast table. I couldn’t stand being continuously talked to in the morning. I just wasn’t that kind of person. I needed a little silence before I started my day in earnest.

The table was laden with all kinds of breakfast dishes to choose from, including deliciously fluffy pancakes, butter and syrup. Ladling some scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes onto my plate, I started eating heartily.

I hadn’t realized it before I arrived at the table, but found now that I was actually quite hungry after the ordeal of my first night in the castle.

But the very best thing by far was the freshly brewed hot coffee. The smell alone had already managed to make my mood lighter.

After adding some milk, I took the first sip, closed my eyes in delight and let out an audible sigh…

Silently I gave praise to the discoverer of the coffee bean!

After I had finished, I followed Malcolm to the place we would be practicing magic.

At first I was surprised to find we were heading in the direction of the underground tunnel system Aaron and I had first been kept in. Dimly I remembered Malcolm telling me that magic must be kept from seeping into our environment.

So maybe it was even safer to start out underground as long as I could not control my powers. Even though I didn’t have access to them yet, as soon as I did, I might instantly be overwhelmed by them. So it was probably for the best to practice out of reach at first.

Somehow I didn’t find that thought very comforting, though. Going back there would inevitably rekindle certain memories of Aaron and me, that ― in my own best interest ― I probably shouldn’t ponder on.

So it was with slight trepidation that I entered a large underground cave some twenty minutes later.

My trepidation shot skyward when I saw the two figures waiting for Malcolm and me. Aaron and Aidan were standing side by side, arms folded, with similar disapproving looks on their faces.