Page 93 of The Lost Elemental

He grinned against my lips. “I don’t hate that.”

I unwrapped my legs from around Phoenix’s waist and lowered them to the ground. They trembled, but I held steady. Phoenix bent to pull up his jeans, and a laugh bubbled out of me.

“Not really a sound I want to be hearing after I just fucked you senseless, Pip.”

That only made me laugh harder. “We somehow managed to have the hottest sex of my life while staying almost fully clothed.”

Phoenix’s eyes danced. “I always was an overachiever.”

I bent over and snatched up the little piece of lace from my underwear. “This was uncalled for. How the hell am I supposed to walk home?” The school kilts weren’t overly short, but they weren’t long either. One gust of wind and I could give everyone quite the show.

“Do you really think I would let anyone get a look at that perfect ass?”

I arched a brow.

“Other than Atlas, Kai, and Riven, I mean.”

I stiffened at the sound of Riven’s name.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just getting a little cold. I should get back to my dorm.” Even though I was covered in soot and ash and would be walking there panty-less.

“Nope.” Phoenix guided me in the direction of the royal dorm. “You’re having dinner at the house with me, Kai, and Atlas.”

I breathed a sigh of relief that Riven wasn’t in that group, but I still didn’t want to chance running into him. “I don’t know—”

“It’s already decided, Pip. You can shower in my room, and I’ll get you some fresh clothes. It’s important that we spend time together.”

He had a point there. And more importantly, I wanted to see Atlas and Kai. It had only been a matter of hours, but I missed them.

“All right.”

Phoenix tugged me up the walkway and towards the door. Thankfully, no one had seen us in our state. We looked like characters out of some post-apocalyptic thriller.

He opened the door to loud, boisterous voices from the living room. The guys were obviously watching some sort of sports match, but the second we stepped into the living area, three sets of eyes snapped to us. Great, Riven was here.

Kai’s eyes widened. “I thought I felt the ground shake. Please tell me you two didn’t blow something up.”

Phoenix chuckled. “Nothing destroyed, but it’s safe to say Aura is a three-affinity elemental. Her fire magic was just locked.”

Riven glared at us both. “And you thought it was a good idea to set it free?”

“The unbinding is tomorrow. This is her best shot at remaining stable through that,” Phoenix said calmly.

“It’s foolish,” Riven gritted out as he stalked towards the exit. Just as he was about to pass us, his nostrils flared, and his head jerked in Phoenix’s direction. “Did you fuck her?”

He could smell that? That was a hell of an air gift. My face went crimson.

Smoky darkness gathered around Phoenix, and he gave Riven a hard shove. “Watch your mouth! I don’t know what’s crawled up your ass lately, but it’s time to remove it. You can be an asshole to me, but I won’t let you talk that way about Aura.”

Riven’s breathing became ragged. “You’re all playing with fire. I tried to tell you to stay away from her. You just wouldn’t listen. What? Does she have a cotton candy-flavored puss—?"

He hadn’t even finished the word before Phoenix hauled off and decked him. Riven stumbled back, holding his jaw. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Get out of my sight before I do something far more permanent,” Phoenix growled.

Riven shook his head and spat blood onto the floor. “You’ll regret this.”