November Reign (Northarbor Coven #3)

3. Enticing

Enticing

Oak

“Get it together,” I muttered to myself as I strode down the halls of the mansion prison I was living in towards the relative safety of my room.

It was only relatively safe from the others since no other motherfucker in this goddamn house had any boundaries. Hela practically lived in my room. No idea how she kept getting in, since I locked the door with magic every time I left it.

Almost every morning I was woken either by Cody, Parker or Amorandes, pretty much without fail. They would be there with all their cheerfulness, trying their best to drag me along into their group.

Look, I respected the hell out of them all. Every single person, even Thyme, was working to put the coven back together. It wasn’t working, but they were trying. Cody and Damon were supposed to be learning magic properly. One had some basic training because his power had been locked away with his demon side his whole life. The other had only been a witch for five months .

Cramming an entire lifetime’s worth of magical training into months was incredibly difficult with a dedicated student.

We didn’t have one of those.

Damon was my coven leader. Head Witch of the Northarbor coven by power alone. He had the born talent, the charisma to pull it off. He lacked the heart it took to lead. Damon didn’t want to be a witch. Unlike Cody and Thyme, he didn’t love his magic. I was pretty sure Cody only loved it out of the novelty of having magic after a life with barely any.

One of the most important things about learning magic was your emotional response to it. If you wore it like a burden, much like Damon did, then you would always struggle to hold your control. If you loved it, loved the power you wielded, then it made everything so much easier to do.

Basil loved his magic. He was a witch before he was anything else in his life. His magic was everything to him. Take it away from him and he was nothing.

I’d looked for a way of taking his magic, making him human, so he could never have magic again. The price was too high. To do it, I would have to give up my power. I would have a taint on my soul. My lifespan would be reduced. If push came to shove, I’d do it. I would take away the one thing that Basil cherished over anything else just to make sure we could be free of him.

It was that, or death.

The turn of my thoughts was nearly enough to cool the fire in my blood as I made my way into my room.

With a glance, I could tell Hela had been in there, but there was no sign of the Hellcat.

Good.

I locked the door and leaned against it, looking for the willpower not to do this again.

Nope, it wasn’t working. I was achingly hard from the fire in Thyme’s eyes as he craned his neck to look up at me. He looked so determined and fragile at the same time.

The size difference between us always gave me a thrill. He was someone I could pick up and throw over my shoulder with no hesitation. I’d imagined tossing him onto my bed, tying him there, and playing out all my fantasies as he begged me to let him come. I wanted to make him cry before I gave him pleasure.

All the things I wanted to do to him kept me up at night, usually stroking myself if Hela wasn’t in my room. That one time where she’d judged me had been enough to put a stop to it happening again.

Desperate for some relief, I unbuttoned my jeans, reached into my underwear to circle my hard cock with my fingers .

I drew out my length and stroked it. The dry friction and bite of pain added to the arousal. I spat into my hand and continued to work my dick, thinking of all the things I would do to Thyme if only things were different.

What would he look like naked? He was waif-like in his button ups. Would he have a layer of muscle, or would be all soft, pale, freckled skin? Were his nipples the same pink as his kissable lips? Would he like me to tease them as I drove inside him?

On and on I continued to pleasure myself, as my brain tortured me with images of Thyme naked and writhing on my bed. If he were mine, I’d get him velvet lined cuffs, or use silk. He’d look good with a collar. I just knew he’d be into it. At least in my dreams he was. There, he begged for some sign that I owned him.

A tingle worked its way down my spine as my release neared. In my mind’s eye, I imagined Thyme under me, his lips parted as he moaned my name as I thrust inside him.

“Oak?”

The same voice I heard in my mind came from the other side of the door. I must have missed him knocking while lost in daydreams.

“Oak, please.”

My orgasm hit like a freight train, spilling all over my hand and even onto the hardwood floor. I stifled any noise, unwilling to have anyone find out what I’d been doing.

“Oak? I need…”

I bit back a groan as my cock twitched with another spurt of come just at his damn voice.

The room was so quiet I didn’t dare move until I heard him sigh and walk away.

When I got out of the shower, it was to Hela stretched out on my bed. Somehow, she had cracked open the locked window to get inside my room. Again. Her magic was astounding.

“Fine, you can stay,” I grumbled as she made her way to the other side, leaving plenty of room for me. She did that kneading biscuits thing that would never stop being cute.

Hela was massive. About the size of a panther, maybe, with small wings perfect for gliding and a barbed tipped tail. Her ears also had barbed tips, but she seemed to control when they were sharp, because I had rubbed those ears and she had never hurt me. Toth had said she could breathe fire. How she had ended up with us I’d never understand, even though I was grateful for it.

There was no way I was going down to dinner with everyone else. Not after how I’d acted earlier. Just the idea made my gut churn. I’d take a nap and eat something later. Then I’d apologize to Barr. He hadn’t deserved to be called a pup. I was better than that. He wasn’t lesser for being a Hellhound, I shouldn’t have said what I said. Damon just made me so angry. Dealing with Thyme was hard. Still, it was no excuse. I’d apologize and work on my behavior.

I got under the covers and bit back a grin as Hela nestled closer. Her rumbling purr started up, quickly soothing me into a doze.

When I woke, it was to Toth putting a loaded tray down on the dresser. The door, which I’d locked before my shower, was slightly ajar. Damn demons and their magic.

“Brought you dinner.” He was a demon of few words. Something I respected about him. His voice softened when he caught a glimpse of his Hellcat. “Thought you’d be here.” Hela got up. “No. Stay where you are.”

The cat sat down, observing Toth. She was so remarkable. Clearly very intelligent. If she suddenly spoke one day, I wouldn’t be surprised.

“Going to have a night with Cody,” Toth always spoke to her like she was a person, not an animal .

In return, Hela made a chirruping sound and flopped back onto the bed.

“She likes you.”

Surprised, I looked away from the purring cat to Toth lingering in my bedroom.

“I like her, too. Even if she keeps breaking in here.”

His lips lifted in a smirk. “She does what she wants.”

“So, like most of the people living here?” I grinned, the expression feeling strange on my face.

“Yes,” Toth agreed. He lingered in the doorway, something on his mind. “You need to challenge Damon more. Everyone is too soft on him.”

“Yeah.” Even Keren had treaded softly with Damon. Part of that might have been the frequent death threats. Keren was also unmated and not a royal. He’d returned to the demon realm rather than risk being caught in a contract with a witch.

No real loss. All he’d done was upset poor Cody, who was the sweetest person, aside from Thyme, to ever exist.

It did mean we’d lost a fighter at a critical time.

My research into finding a way to rid Basil of his magic forever had given me a means of protecting Barr, the Hellhound, from a contract. The charm I’d made for him had taken me weeks of complicated spell work, but Barr was too valuable to lose to Basil if he ever found out his true name .

In a surprising move, Barr had insisted I implant the crystal inside him so it couldn’t be easily taken from him. Only I knew where it was because everyone else had left the room once I’d picked up the scalpel. After it had been implanted, I’d used some magic to heal it up until only a thin line remained.

“Not Cody, though. He’s not meant for battles.”

“None of us are.”

Toth spared me a glance. “No, we aren’t. Some of us just weather it better. Cody is not one of those. Damon will rise to the challenge, but he needs to be pushed.”

“Can’t Thyme—“

“No. Thyme is like Cody, though not as sweet, soft. You are the one who needs to push him.”

“What about Gregoris?”

“He can’t teach him witch magic. Besides, he’s too afraid of upsetting his mate.”

Parker would defend Damon, his adoptive brother, to his last breath. Gregoris was still attempting to bond with Damon for his mate’s sake. Their relationship was improving.

I sighed. “Fine.”

“Not Cody,” he reminded me. “You leave him for Thyme to train.”

“Right. ”

“Oak?”

“Yeah?”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks. I’ll need it.”

Toth smirked at me before leaving the room, pulling the door closed as he went.

With a click of my fingers, I illuminated the room. I got up to check what he’d brought me. The food looked delicious! There was even a slice of cheesecake on the tray.

At least his threats came with goodies.