Wicked Bad (Wicked 3 2)

Harrison choked on a spicy slice of pepper steak and grabbed the fruit juice beside her plate. “The queen?”

Ric nodded, snagging one of her sweet potato crisps. “That is how she prefers to be addressed. They were very important in Massachusetts you know. The most powerful of all Magians. Here, though they have enough servants and lesser Magians for her to hold court happily forever, it isn’t enough. She is still an outcast in North America, and it’s clear she puts all the weight of that onto Jacob, though he was only a kid at the time. I wonder what she would have done if the seer hadn’t pointed to the Abbott heiress as our other half.”

“She sounds like a real prize.” An image was forming in Harrison’s mind, and it wasn’t a pretty one. Not that she didn’t feel bad for Ric and Jacob. She understood family pressure, but nothing like that. Her parents, especially her mother Moira, would never choose Harrison’s friends or lovers for her own political ends. But what really bothered her was that it wasn’t the most complimentary reason to be kidnapped. Because Jacob’s mother wanted to be back on top of the social ladder.

His nostrils flared as he watched her expression close. “Why do I feel like I said something wrong again?”

She shrugged, pushing away from the table and turning to look out over the extensive grounds. This was a fairytale gone horribly wrong. A castle, an evil queen, an uptight prince being forced to wed without love. And Harrison? She was locked in the tower, wishing she had longer hair. Maybe a potion or two.

A wave of dizziness nearly knocked her to her knees. “Harry… Harry, damn it, can you hear me?”

“Lorie?” She closed her eyes, trying to focus. I’m here. But her magic refused to cooperate. It kept running into Jacob’s binding. She saw a flash of her brother’s face, his brilliant blue eyes fierce and frustrated, and then he was gone. Again.

Ric’s arms wrapped around her, pulling her close. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

There it was, a shimmer of energy, his magic calling to hers, racing through her veins and along her skin. She looked down and watched electric arcs of familiar blue mingle with his vibrant red. She could sense his own surprise. His desire. He wanted her, more than he’d expected to. Nearly as much as he wanted Jacob.

His hazel gaze honed in on her parted lips. He was going to kiss her. Harrison knew she needed to stop him, that there was a reason, an important reason why she needed to get away.

Damned if she could think of what it was as he lowered his head to hers.

“Starting without me?”

Ric let her go, stepping away from her as though she’d suddenly grown horns. Harrison crossed her arms defensively, trying to hide how much his defection hurt. His energy was wrenched away from hers but her heart was still racing, being this close to both of them. She hated feeling this vulnerable.

“We were just talking when something happened to her, Jacob. Look how pale she is.” Ric’s expression was worried, his voice rough.

“Something did happen to me. I’ve been attacked, nearly frozen into an ice sculpture by some random Magian psycho, not that anyone seems to care.” She glared pointedly at Jacob. “Tricked into taking a morph home and finally kidnapped and taken to South America.” And after this last episode, she was getting the distinct impression that her brother was in danger. Maybe from the same person who’d come after her. She needed to talk to Conway. “I need my phone. Please, it’s important.”

A muscle in Jacob’s jaw twitched. “As your match, the issue of your well being is our priority. The person who attacked you will not do so again.”

Ric made a noise, as if he had something to add, but a look from Jacob silenced him. “And your kidnapping was unfortunate but necessary. The Abbotts are too powerful. If you were allowed to return to them we would never have the chance to press our suit. Never be allowed near you. And that I cannot allow.”

“Allow? You cannot allow?” Harrison sneered. “If you think this is how to seduce a woman, maybe you and the oh so charming Ricardo are better off as a duet. No one allows me to do anything. Not anymore. You of all people should understand what it’s like to want to be in control of your own life.”

Jacob’s gaze narrowed. “Been talking out of school again, have you, Ric?”

Ric raised an eyebrow. “Somebody needed to. If only to prepare our guest.”

Harrison snorted at the word guest, then shivered when Jacob’s dark eyes went black. “She’s been prepared. And we’ve waited long enough. I think it’s time she learned what it means to belong to us.”

Chapter Five

When she left the safety of her childhood home and the ever-protective circle of family and friends, she had no idea what she’d been letting herself in for. The last thing she imagined was this, being tied to the bed with an affectionate, and obviously charmed, length of rope while two determined Magians undressed her.

She tugged at her restraints, but they just caressed her fondly, ignoring her request for release. She looked up at Jacob as he unbuttoned her sundress, feeling a new jolt of electricity with every brush of his fingertips against her bare skin. She liked it a little too much for her peace of mind. “Forcing me, physically or with your powers, will only bring more shame to your family line. The Proxenos…everyone will know. I will know.”

Jacob shook his head with a sigh. “You enjoy insulting me, don’t you? A Siren’s call can bring pleasure unlike anything you’ve ever known. Perhaps someday soon I will show you. But I know what needs to happen for this match to be sanctioned. No magical coercion. Only passion. So much passion that you will beg us to fuck you. Beg us to make you ours completely. We won’t take you until you do.”

Harrison bit her lip and Ric came up beside Jacob, that charmingly wicked smile once more lifting his lips. “I don’t know whose being tortured more. You or Jacob. He hates to wait, you know. Princes usually do. Be a good girl and give in quickly. You know you’ll enjoy it. I always do.”

Jacob’s hands left her body so swiftly she only saw a blur as he turned. He gripped Ric’s hips and yanked him by the belt loops until their hips were pressed together. Ric gasped, his smile slipping as need sparked in his hazel gaze.

Harrison watched as Jacob claimed Ric’s lips with his own. Liquid arousal pooled between her thighs, her body heating in the space of a jagged breath. Was it strange for her to be so affected by the sight of these two men together?

No. They were hers.

Now, where had that thought come from?