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REJECTED MATE 67.2
The faerie’s gaze sharpened. “What’s in it for me?”“Freedom,” I blurted. “Freedom from this circle. Freedom from being burned with the iron salt I’ve stuffed in my pocket. Freedom from this gun filling you with iron bullets. Need any more incentives to take off that bargain? I’d be happy to demonstrate.”“Keep your hair on,” he said, his nostrils flaring. “There’s no need to rant like a raging bull.”“What were you saying before?” Griff asked.I turned to my mate, my eyes pleading. “Let’s get rid of this curse, while the faerie’s still in an agreeable mood.”Griff’s features tightened, and he stared down at me so long that my heart spasmed. Eventually he gave me a soft nod. “You’re right.”“Go on, then,” I said to Rumpel Kracknuts. “Take away your bargain.”“It’s done.” He patted down his ruffles and sniffed.“What does that mean?” I asked.“See for yourself.” He waved his fingers in the direction of Griff’s middle.Griff glanced at his chest, then at me, and frowned. I frowned back.
REJECTED MATE Chapter 68
I jumped back, my heart somersaulting to the back of my throat, the scorpion hurtled toward me on clattering beetle wings. Beki barked at me to run—as if I wasn’t already trying to escape—but no matter how fast I lurched away from the thing, it kept coming.Griff chased after it with his dagger, but the wretched thing seemed to want to land on me. Its pincers click-click-clacked like castanets, their sharp points glinting against the light.My pulse thundered. If I didn’t do something right now, I would become the scorpion’s next host.Rumpel Kracknuts’ maniacal laughter echoed across the ritual room’s blackened walls. “Fools. Did you think a demon curse would be so easily removed? It’s looking for another host.”“Put it back inside me,” Griff snarled.“Impossible,” the faerie said, his voice rising several octaves.I spun, pointed my gun at the monstrous curse, and shot a hole through its middle. Black debris exploded from its underbelly, dissolving into smoke, only to drift back int
REJECTED MATE 68.1
“Throw it.” The faerie pointed at the ceiling. “It should remain airborne until it absorbs the curse.”“And then?” I asked.He raised a shoulder. “Then make sure you don’t let the blade graze you on the way down, or you’ll become the curse’s next host.”“Is there anything else we need to know?” I clutched the dagger. “Any salient information you have that will ensure we don’t summon you again because you omitted something vital.”His lips pursed. “Seventy-two hours, don’t let the blade touch you,” he counted off the items on his fingers. “Try this summoning shit with me again, and I’ll be ready for you with curses.”Griff patted me on the shoulder and nodded at the other end of the room. “Throw it in that corner.”“All right.” I tossed the dagger over the ritual circle, making Rumpel Kracknuts duck and hiss.It embedded in the wall, directly beneath the cloud. A tendril of black smoke seeped into its blade and disappeared into the metal. More and more of the vapor streamed into the da
REJECTED MATE 68.2
Rumpel Kracknuts bared his sharp teeth and hissed. “Tell anyone about this, and I will slit your throats.”“You just murdered an innocent healer in front of two witnesses,” I snapped. “If anyone’s going to get their throat slit, it’s you.”“Well, fuck you.” Rumpel Kracknuts gave us the finger before disappearing in a puff of faerie dust.The dagger fell to the floor with a clunk.“She died for me,” Griff said, his face slack.I squeezed my eyes shut, my throat tightening with guilt. “We’d better call the enforcers.”Another knock sounded on the door, and the receptionist from earlier stepped inside. “Oh dear.” He wrung his hands. “I’m terribly sorry for the inconvenience. If you keep quiet about this incident, Fitzroy will waive all charges.”I spluttered. “But this poor woman just got killed. All because she saved my mate’s life.”He clapped a hand to his chest. “All that blood. Fitzroy insists that you order new vestments from the Hatch.”“Did you hear me?” I said much louder this t
REJECTED MATE Chapter 69
This time, we were too busy glaring at the cursed dagger to notice the old man walk out of the room. As soon as the door clicked shut, I placed a hand on Griff’s arm.“There’s only one person I hate enough to stab, but he’s too powerful,” I muttered.“We’re not going after a god,” Griff said.I shook my head. “Especially not one who flings curses for every occasion.”Griff walked to the dagger, crouched low, and examined its handle. I held out a hand and said, “Don’t touch it.”“There’s no chance of me doing that,” he muttered.“Hold on a second.” I jogged over to the Hatch, where I’d left the box from the vendors who had sold the dagger.Inside was a leather sheath and a pair of protective gloves labelled ONE USE ONLY. That was good enough for me. Nodding, I slipped one onto my hand, saved the other for later, and returned to the dagger.“What are you doing?” Griff asked.“Making sure neither of us gets nicked.” I picked up the dagger by its handle and stuck it into the leather sheat
REJECTED MATE 69.1
“You were in a king-sized bed with a woman sitting on your face, another one riding your dick, and your fingers stuck in two more.” I shook my head. “The memory of it is so vivid. There were another two rolling about with each other, waiting their turn.”“An orgy,” he said, his words flat.“I screamed. Demanded to know what you were doing, but you kept going.” Disgust coiled around my belly and squeezed tight. I swayed on my feet, breathing hard to settle my stomach, glad we’d been too anxious to eat.“Is that when you killed me?” he asked.“No.” I swallowed. “Half of the women scrambled off you; the other half remained. They were she-wolves who bore a grudge. They kept fucking you and hurling insults, while you were acting like you’d won a golden ticket to the Playboy Mansion.”“Cathwulf,” he whispered.My breath came in panicked gasps. “They wouldn’t stop.” My voice trembled. “Every word they said made sense. I was too big, too oafish, too ugly to attract a man. Now that I’d lost my
REJECTED MATE 69.2
“Is this the double-decker boat, right?” I said.Griff placed a hand on the small of my back and walked us into what looked like the corridor of a space age hotel. “The Thames Shuttle is the most luxurious way to travel, and I want to return to the Isle of Wight in style.”Our room was also white, but the half furthest away from the door was made of glass. A double bed took up that space, which had a full view of our surroundings.I glanced out of the window across the Thames at a bridge I was sure hadn’t existed when I was alive. When I turned to Griff to see if he had noticed, he was looking at me with a hunger in his eyes that made me feel like prey.My pulse kicked up a notch and warmth surged to my core. All notions of being an alpha female disappeared on butterfly wings, along with what was left of my confidence. I hadn’t spoken of that night in decades—there had been no need when my relationship with Griff had played on an endless loop.“This is a really nice room.” I tried to
REJECTED MATE Chapter 70
Griff took my hand, and I followed him on trembling legs across the cabin to the side encased in glass. The last vestiges of sunlight shone over the concrete buildings across the river, coloring the water’s surface the exact shade of gold as his eyes.My heart alternated between fluttering and spasming. This moment was more perfect than I could have ever imagined. We had not only broken Griff’s curse and discussed our deaths, but we had given each other both compassion and forgiveness. This was a clean slate on which we could write the rest of our history.A doubt niggled in the back of my mind. What if something between us went wrong? We had thwarted Hades’ attempt at destroying Griff and Shifter City, but he could always return to exact his revenge. What if Griff found me lacking?We reached the double bed, which was covered in a white velvety quilt that contrasted with its black lacquered headboard. Metal hooks hung off its sides, which were probably for tying people up. I glanced
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