Don't Let Them Take You Alive

*Ryatt*

Ella’s lips are warm and supple against mine, but there is nothing soft or gentle about this kiss. Our teeth clash, and she bites down hard on my lower lip as I lift her up so her legs are wrapped around my waist.

Goddess, I would have lost control. I would have laid her on the cold, hard ground and fucked her like the bond wanted me too, like I wanted to, had it not been for the thick, metallic scent of magic in the air.

She’s going to hate me for this trick. I already regret it, but what choice do I have when we’ve been followed by hellhounds for the last ten miles?

She has no idea that I’ve walked us backward toward a large, jagged rock that juts out from the ground and looms behind us. She has no idea there’s a cleft just big enough for three people–her, the fox, and her maid.

I break from the kiss, gasping for breath, and then turn toward the opening.

In the darkness, it’s nothing but a shadow against the granite face of the rock. I toss her into it, and she chokes o