Yep, still in dreamland.
“Just the human, then?” he asked, gesturing to Kate like she was an object rather than a person. “I thought for sure you’d use someone like me for…better things. ‘Tis the Season, little vampire. Even your kind gets all worked up around all thepheromones and heat in the air. Consider it a little extra service, yeah, toots? I’m not bad to look at and a real monster in bed. They don’t call me Big for no reason.”
Monster was the word of the day.
The wink was what really sold the fact that Big might actually be flirting with me. A wonder all on its own. Our last encounter hadn’t been so saucy. Granted, I was trying to escape a witch and so was he, but Big wasn’t even the slightest bit interested in me. Not that I picked up on, anyway.
Were pixies Fae? Probably. It didn’t appear that Fae were the only ones to call this realm home, but I was pretty sure pixies were another type of Fae here.
Was the Season to blame for this, too? No, I wasn’t feeling tingly around Big. My heated stares were entirely reserved for Cash and Jo. It’d been impossible to keep my eyes away from those two. The urges were creeping back in, though thankfully later than they had the first couple of times.
But Iwasa Royal Siren hybrid, and Cash mentioned how my blood had fully awakened with the Season. So, were my pheromones at play here? Was I unintentionally releasing some? But why wasn’t Kate impacted? The more I thought about it, the less I understood.
I wasn’t given the chance to dive deeper. Cash was already looming over Big, in another one of his ridiculously weird but perfect for him outfits. His gloved hand pointed to the rune on his neck—my rune—then he sent that sassy little finger my way.
Big followed the gesture and peered down at my neck, curious. “Bond runes? You and this little vampire? How?”
Guess it was time to explain what I really was.
“I’m not just a vampire. I’m a vampire, human…and Fae,” I started before Big’s pretty pink eyes widened.
Then he threw his head back with a laugh. “I wondered what that magic coming off of you was. Thought the monster overthere was to blame. But I guess that explains why my magic was so confused by you. Lucky for you, I didn’t need to know what you are to get you where you needed to go. So, they fucking did it, did they? A hybrid with more than two kinds of blood? I’d heard they’d done it with two, but three…fuck. That’s insane. Gotta hand it to those humans, they aren’t afraid to do shit no one else in their right mind would do.”
“That shit being me, I guess.”
Big smirked and brushed back his dark hair. “No offense, little vampire. Just never thought anyone would be that stupid. Stupider to think they could control it, but that sounds just about human. Now I get why Serine and Harmony wanted you. You would’ve made the perfect pet.” His eyes glinted as they caught mine. “Or, should I say, weapon.”
Cash looked like he was about to go full Fae Karen on my behalf, so I steered right past it. “Anyway, that’s why I’m here. Sort of. And now that the Nether Royals know it—”
“Yeah, I can guess what sort of shit they’ll do to come after you.” His clever eyes slid down and found the other bond rune on my throat. “But I’m guessing that got complicated right from the jump? Two bond runes? Aram’s? Can’t say I’m not a little bit interested in how that will all play out. You’re pretty fucking unlucky, little vampire.”
“Tell me about it,” I grumbled.
Kate sighed again, like no amount of shit talk could persuade her against falling for him. But it wouldn’t be Kate if she didn’t choose the walking red flag. “This guy is going to keep me company?”
“Babysit,” Big corrected.
I acted like he hadn’t. “Yes. Big will bevery good to you,or I’ll consider the favor unpaid and demand two more. Both of which will mean he gets to go on an adventure to fight the Nether Royals.”
Big’s sly smirk was stolen by my threat. “No problem-o, toots. A human’s an easy favor. I’ll keep her out of sight.” He snapped his fingers and glitter exploded. Suddenly, he was exactly how I remembered him. He fluttered over to Kate on pixie wings that were a closer look and make to a dragonfly’s, the size of a finger, and landed on her shoulder.
My girl just about lost her shit. “Oh. My. Fucking. God. How—why—he’s so cute. Oh-em-gee,” she stammered, frozen out of fear of moving and possibly hurting him in the process.
I laughed and caught the hint of a smile on Jo’s face. “He’s a pixie.”
Tinkerbell dude crossed his arms, not amused. “We prefer Wings.”
Of course they did.
Cash sighed melodramatically and shooed them away. “Now, go. We’ve wasted enough time already. Keep the human out of sight and protected. I don’t have to tell you what I’ll do to you if you don’t.” His eyes cut over to me. “Or worse, what she’ll do to you.”
Cash might be an arrogant asshole, but he never failed to make me feel like a damn queen around him. The reverence in his gaze was intoxicating to someone like me. I’d only ever been treated like a protected thing by Phillip and Nigel, but Cash, Jo, and Sloan always made me feel like a motherfucking badass.
I smirked and ignored how it’d make me look. I kissed the adorable asshole in full view of everyone else. Big made a little noise of discontent alongside Jo. Kate was the only one who wanted more, hollering with an encouragingwhoop, whoop.
“Hell yeah! Make it juicy. Show that gorgeous bad boy who’s the real boss here!” she called out as I pulled away and enjoyed the stunned shock overtaking the disgruntled irritation in Cash’s expression.
Kate was still googly-eyed when I hugged her goodbye, but she nodded when I promised I would get everything fixed as soon as possible and come back for her. In a whirl of glitter and light, the two disappeared and my stomach twisted in their absence. I’d only met Big once, so a part of me didn’t trust him at all, but I didn’t have any choice right now.
