"You want to be chased. You need the choice taken away from you. You fight your own desires because you think you cannot handle it Syn. You punish yourself for something that happened long ago, something you couldn’t have changed because destiny decided it before you were even born."
"Fuck destiny, I decide my own destiny Ryder. Not some fucking preordained bullshit," I snarled tired of listening.
"Fighting destiny," he shook his head and smiled, "Every time I think you can't become more of a puzzle Syn—you throw in a new piece. Go ahead and add more pieces Syn, it only makes me need to put them all together and see what the end result is."
"You’re a bastard Ryder," I hissed trying to turn away and put distance between us. He didn't allow it, he moved with Fae speed, my hair flying with the wind he created, wafting over my cheek.
"I don’t make excuses for what I am, or what I do. I play hard. I love hard and I fuck even harder Syn, I am what I am. So if you play games with me, keep in mind I will be more than happy to play them with you—and I always win," he growled close to my ear before his lips gently fanned against mine. When I looked up, he was once again standing beside Zahruk with his lips twisted in a devastating smile that was a touch of seduction and amusement.
It was the first time I'd seen him move like that—no not move. He'd just sifted time and space. I'd knew the Fae could do it and even though I'd known he should've been able to, it still shocked me to my very being. I'd never seen it done before, ever.
I brought my hand up against my lips still feeling his kiss burning against them. I shook from the need to chase him and see where that kiss would lead to. I didn’t, instead I turned away from him searching through the crowd for an empty spot to stand in, away from what my body was feeling for Ryder.
I didn’t find a place, instead I found Adrian standing back in a dark corner with his eyes watching me closely. I stepped forward and headed directly towards him. When I stepped closer, I could read overwhelming desire in his eyes.
"You shouldn’t be here Syn," he whispered.
"And you should be?" I retorted as I watched his face close off once more. He was hiding something, I could feel it. "Adrian…what are you hiding?" I asked him bluntly, tired of playing word games.
"I told you as much as I could Syn. You should leave the club, now."
I scanned his beautiful face. His face was covered in the same strain as Zahruk's was. I took a look around the room noting several other Fae in close proximity looked the same, as if they were struggling against something. The air had also grown thicker inside the club, a loud thud echoed as metal grates were pulled across the only exit I could see.
It looked like a fog machine was sending a thickness into the room, making it eerie and dangerous. I turned looking back at where Adrian still watched me carefully, his eyes pleading as his head bent forward. "You need to run fast and deftly when the time comes baby. Don't stop running until you're safe." And with that he disappeared from where he had been, vanishing from the spot completely.
"Adrian?" I called not caring how stupid I looked talking to thin air.
A microphone sounded as someone tapped it and welcomed the Fae.
"I see we have some fine hunters here tonight." A tall leggy brunette said as her emerald green eyes looked around the room, her smile was filled with amusement as growls sounded around the room in confirmation to her words. "The fun will start shortly, until then find the prey you brought with you and make sure it is marked."
Howls erupted from the men next to me, along with several others who joined in. The fine hair on the back of my neck stood up with their unworldly sounding noise. I turned around and started back in the direction which the elevators had been but I must have had it wrong, because in their place was a wall of solid glass.
"Going somewhere?" Ryder asked from behind me.
"Home," I whispered breathlessly as I took him in, he no longer looked human. He was taller, his features more defined as he watched me. I truly was his prey in this moment, his eyes tracking everything I did. When my hands fisted at my sides his eyes flicked to the subtle motion, his head tilting, as if he had just found the most exquisite prey.
"There is no turning back now Syn," he said thickly, his voice leveled with gravel in his tone.
"Ryder, something isn't right here," I breathed.
His wicked smile sent my pulse racing as he closed the distance and sniffed my hair, his hands resting on my exposed shoulders. "I can smell your fear Syn, your heart beating wildly as it realizes what it truly wants," his mouth pressed against my ear making heat flood my center, "You want this, you want me to catch you. To make you my mine in every sense of the word, don’t you?"
I placed my head on his chest as his hands drifted lower, his fingers tracing softly along my naked arms. I lifted my head as he took my hands and rubbed my palms with his thumbs with small circles. "And if I don’t want this Ryder. What then?" I asked out loud.