Dark Matter (8 page)

He shook his head mournfully. “That’s
complicated.”

“
Stories about love usually
are,” I said flippantly.

He laughed. The sound was bitter cold.
“She was the first Elemental I allowed myself to want.”

“
So this is about your
pride?” I accused.

He shrugged lightly. “Stories about
love usually are.”

Maybe in his messed up life, but not in
reality. Well, if I was being fair, that wasn’t really true. A
romance could easily turn into a tragedy when pride was involved.
“I won’t let you have me, Jett.”

He stared at me, his eyes void of
emotion. “It appears you may not have the convenient option others
of your kind enjoy.”

“
You don’t know that for
sure,” I spat.

He scoffed lightly. “Neither do you.
You demonize me when you know nothing about me. Would it surprise
you to learn I actually want to give you a choice?”

What was his angle? He had to have one.
He was too conniving of a person not to. “It might.”

“
I do not care to spend a
small eternity with you knowing you hate me, Rayla.”

The sound of my name sent a ripple of
fear through my body. Even though I didn’t like the custom, I
hadn’t heard my name much lately. I waited for the compulsion but
none came.

Jett sat next to me and took my hand in
his. The edges of our knees touched, but I couldn’t angle myself
any farther away from him.

I searched his face. “What do you hope
to accomplish with me that you couldn’t with any other
Elemental.”

He laughed. The sound echoed off the
stone of the castle making it ten times more menacing. “I realize
you have led a sheltered life, little one, but really, you could
not be so naïve.”

I gritted my teeth. I knew it. “So it
really is all about power for you?”

He ran a distracting finger slowly over
my wrist. “I may be the only one of my brothers who would admit
this to you freely, but yes.” His gaze shifted to mine. “You
needn’t worry, though. We are compatible. You could be happy with
me if you gave it a chance.”

“
I’m in love with someone
else,” I said forcefully. Two someone else’s to be
precise.

He shook his head. “So am I, but I am
willing to court you. I am convinced I could win you. Just because
Zach was the first to find you, does not mean you are truly in love
with him.”

“
I know how I
feel.”

He cocked his head. “Do you really?”
His stare deepened, and I couldn’t look away from him even though I
tried.

My eyelids felt heavy. A slow spreading
warmth saturated my chest before a sinking sensation anchored my
limbs. My resolve was fading fast into the slippery distance. “What
are you doing to me?” I whispered. I honestly wondered if this was
what it felt like to be wasted.

He slid his arms around me, pulling me
closer. The heat of his breath caressed my skin, sending gooseflesh
rippling along the back of my neck. I knew I should be objecting to
this, but I couldn’t find the will. “Poor, Rayla, you really are an
innocent one.”

“
Mmm-hmm,” I purred even
though I was hazily aware that he hadn’t actually asked me a
question.

He chuckled, low and seductive. I
watched him come closer as if I was dreaming this whole thing. I
let my eyelids fall when the softness of his lips met mine. Taking
in the sensations slowly, I breathed him in.

The warmth in my chest exploded through
me. He pulled me in tighter, groaning. Molding me to him, his hands
slid up and down my back. I never wanted him to let me go. His kiss
made me forget about everything and everyone. I was carried away to
a silent place where he and I were the only people that existed.
Too soon his lips left mine. He whispered, “I never thought to feel
this way again.” He swallowed hard. “You taste just like
her.”

It took a while for the full effects of
his words to slam into me. “Wait? What? Who are you…” The fog in my
brain was swept away by the reality of what he had said. If he
couldn’t have my mother, he would settle for me? I pushed at his
chest and then his face to get him to move back. “You think I will
be your second choice?” He looked at me through dispassionate eyes.
I stood up and shuddered. “Just—eww. I don’t know what happened
between you and that other girl, but I am not her!” I felt betrayed
although I didn’t even like him. Squaring my shoulders, I hissed,
“Get away from me, Jett. I never want to see you again!”

Finn came barreling onto the terrace,
his face ruddy. He took one look at me and rushed Jett, slamming
him in the chest. Jett staggered backward, but righted himself
easily. Cassie ran over to me. She didn’t say anything, but she
didn’t have to. Her features were clouded with worry.

Jett smoothed his lapels then narrowed
his eyes at Finn. “This is how you treat your guests?”

Finn gave him an equally turbulent
expression. “If you were any other person, I would have you removed
to the dungeons. We had an agreement.”

Jett laughed. The dark sound
reverberated through me. I couldn’t keep myself from shaking. Even
my teeth were chattering. Cassie pulled me against her side,
wrapping a thick shawl around my shoulders.

Jett glanced over at me. His eyes
belied his smooth exterior. He was seething inside. “She is mine! I
have every right to do whatever I like with her.”

Finn stiffened. “Maybe in your own
lands, but not here. Rayla is under Ignisian
protection.”

Jett smirked. “Is that so? You think I
haven’t seen how you look at her?”

Cassie’s arm dropped to her side. I
gave her a questioning look, but she only stared at me with hurt in
her eyes. I shook my head, tears blurring my vision. I hated
hurting her, but how could I help how Finn felt about
me?

Finn let out an ironic chuckle. “At
least I am attempting to fight for what I want. You, on the other
hand, let another man claim the woman you loved.”

“
I didn’t have a choice,”
Jett bellowed.

Finn stepped closer to Jett, angling
his body between us. “You could have challenged him. It was your
right.”

“
I was not strong enough at
the time, and you know it.”

I peeked around Finn. “Why
not?”

“
You stay out of this,” Jett
said. The look he gave me nearly took me to my knees.

I wasn’t about to let him intimidate me
any longer. Since they were throwing the term out there, I took my
shot with it as well. “I have a right to know,” I said
firmly.

Jett shook his head. “You have no
rights in this place. The sooner you accept that, the easier your
life will be.”

Finn’s eyes grew wide and then narrowed
at me as if he just realized Jett’s statement was true. He turned
toward Cassie. “Get Rayla upstairs while I deal with
this.”

Jett took a step toward us. “I have not
traveled all this way to allow you to take her from me.”

Cassie seemed unsure what to do, but
she pulled lightly on my arm. “Come on. Let’s go.”

We started toward the door, but Jett
blocked our path moments before we entered the great hall. He
shoved Cassie aside then clamped his arms around me. His voice came
out gravelly. “I think I will just leave with what I came for if it
is all the same to you.” He backed away from Finn, scanning the
area for other threats.

This couldn’t be happening. I could
barely breathe, but I was able to twist my head around enough to
see Heath standing in the doorway. His face was contorted with such
emotion he looked as if he could call down the wrath of God, but he
didn’t move. “Don’t let him take me,” I managed to get out,
although it was barely audible. I tried to call the elements to aid
me but for whatever reason they wouldn’t come.

Heath seemed to awaken from a deep
sleep and rushed toward us with Finn and five other men on his
heels. I thought one of them was going to tackle Jett with me in
his arms, but they just circled us. Finn’s palm glowed bright red
and a wall of fire surrounded me and Jett. The heat of it made me
gasp for air.

Jett turned me in his arms and buried
my face protectively against his chest. Even though I was terrified
of him I could have easily stayed in his arms forever. Whatever he
had done to me had made a lasting impression.

I heard a rumble and coughed as smoke
threatened my lungs. When I looked up, a perfect dome of dirt
encased us. Intense pounding sounded through the barrier. Jett
looked down at me. His eyes were a bit sad but still determined. “I
am sorry about earlier, Rayla. I had not meant to get that carried
away. You are so like her, and yet, not like her at all. Even
though you probably won’t believe me, I fully understand that you
are not your mother…” He didn’t say that he wished I was even
though he might as well have. His longing for her was still clear
in his eyes. He took my shoulders between his hands. “Your life
with me would be enjoyable. I am not the monster you have imagined
me to be. Perhaps I should have lied to you about my reasons for
wanting you, but I believe in being upfront with my motives. Even
though I can’t say I love you at this moment, I now know I
could.”

Someone’s fist broke through the dome
and the whole thing cracked like a splintered eggshell. It was only
a matter of moments before the dome would come crashing down around
us. I had to stall. I couldn’t allow Jett to take me. I couldn’t
live with him for hundreds of years knowing he would always imagine
I was my mother. Fear and hurt tightened my throat. I couldn’t
speak.

Was it possible my mother loved this
man? Was there a redeeming part of him I couldn’t see? I stared at
him searching for answers I would never find in the depths of his
eyes.

He touched my cheek. “I must go, but
make no mistake, I will return for you. You are hers, and,
therefore, you are mine.” In a flash of green light, he was
gone.

The barrier shattered the moment he
disappeared, filling my senses with his scent. Dirt rained down on
me, covering my hair and my dress.

I was shaking so uncontrollably that I
didn’t care who lifted me into his arms. It was only later I
realized that Heath was the one carrying me back to my room. It was
impossible for me to mistake him for someone else. He kept
murmuring about how Finn was not suitable to represent his kingdom
and how he was going to torture Jett the first chance he was able.
How Jett had ruined what was supposed to have been the best night
of his life. There was more meaning there than I had desire to
explore. Let’s just say that Jett may have done me a huge
favor.

Heath kicked my door open and said some
strange words before he lowered me onto the bed. I suddenly felt as
though I had just gotten out of a shower. My face was no longer
covered in dust, and my hair was slightly damp. I was also wearing
something different. It slid over my limbs like silk, but covered
me like a track suit. I was too out of it to really
care.

I felt his body lean across mine and
his breath warm my neck. “I wish I were better at this stuff, but I
assure you…” He laughed lightly, his cheek nuzzling against mine.
“I’m good when it counts.”

When his lips brush my ear, my entire
body sizzled for more. “Heath,” I warned, but there was no strength
to my voice.

“
Don’t worry, my little
warrior.” His lips blazed a trail of fire to the hollow of my neck
where he buried his face and inhaled deeply. His five o’clock
shadow tickled my skin when he smiled. “The only way I would ever
claim you is if and when you are completely aware of what is
happening.” He laughed softly. “What fun would it be to take you
now?”

I tried to roll away from him, but I
was barely coherent as it was. I opened my mouth to tell him that
he would never succeed, but it only came out as a moan.

“
I know, sweet one,” he
soothed. “You must save your strength and prepare yourself…” He ran
his hand over my hair in an unnervingly intimate gesture before he
pulled back slightly, inhaling slowly. His tone lowered
dramatically when he spoke. “Because once I conquer Finn…I’m coming
after you.”

The finality of his declaration made my
breath hitch. Heat rushed through me, claiming everything within me
as his own. I cringed at the unwanted feelings of longing that
blasted through my heart.

His weight shifted away from me before
the slow thud of his shoes striking against the floor signaled his
retreat. The door squeaked open then closed, leaving me to the
overwhelming silence.

I had no idea what was wrong with me,
but I seemed to have a hard time staying conscious whenever Jett
was around me for very long.

Chapter Six

Someone was shaking me. I groggily
lifted my eyelids. They refused to stay open, but I managed to say,
“What?” before they drifted closed again.

“
It’s been two days since
the ball. You have to wake up!” It was Cassie. The frantic cadence
to her voice jolted me awake, but now I felt dizziness claim me as
if the world was just seconds from going topsy-turvy. “We can’t
leave if you don’t get your butt out of bed.”