Pariah (The New Covenant Series) (6 page)

He asked what tactics I’d used to
coax him to leave. I explained that I’d talked with him and begged him to walk me back and danced with him because he refused to leave until we did and even insulted him over his taste in Aria.

“Look, I will leave the decision to you, but we can do one of
two things. We can, number one, drag him out of here against his will, or two, you can go in there and turn him on and lead him home by his tongue.” He raised his brows, awaiting my response.

My jaw dropped. I didn’t wan
t him to drag Wes anywhere, but I was no longer Sultry Solara. My tiredness and the events with Altair had squashed that fake side of me like a pesky bug.

“Fine. I’m not feeling part
icularly sexy anymore, but he’s drunk, so maybe he won’t notice.” I sighed, turning to re-enter the back room and put on a show. Maybe I should act like Aria. Her charms apparently worked on him.

Far
ic grabbed my hand as I got ready to enter the room and pulled me backward against his chest. He leaned in, his breath warm on my ear and neck, and said, “You don’t have to
feel
sexy, Solara. You
are
sexy, and he would be a
fool
not to want to leave with
you
tonight.” He loosened his grip, and I remembered to breathe. I didn’t look back, afraid that those words were simply a pep talk and not actually the truth spoken by his beautiful lips.

I grabbed my glass and downed the rest of
the coconut bravery and stepped back to Wesley, who was looking out the window. I stepped in front of him and looked out into the darkness, trying to psych myself up for what I was about to do. “See anything interesting?” I purred, turning to look at Wes over my bare shoulder. I licked my lips once again, reminding myself of the coconut and the way his eyes followed that same motion back at the bar.

He stepped closer and ran his f
inger over my shoulder, causing my skin to pebble at his gentle touch. I offered a silent prayer that Faric had stepped back outside and wasn’t watching me in case I failed miserably. I also prayed that I could become a goddess that Wesley would want to worship all the way back to the fortress and soon. “You smell so amazing,” he said, inhaling my hair, pushing himself against my back. I reached back and took his hands and put them on my hips. His breath hitched, and I could feel his heart pounding against my back. I began to sway back and forth to a silent sensual rhythm, which he must have heard as well because we were moving as one.

His breath was hot against my
cheek and ear. I turned my face toward him and parted my lips. His stare was dark and intense. I bit my bottom lip and moved his hands from my hips to crisscross my stomach, pulling him tighter against me. His muscles walled around me, ebbing and flowing with me to the imaginary beat.

He
exhaled loudly and squeezed me tighter, moving his mouth to my bare shoulder. I tingled in spots I didn’t know were there.
Focus
. This was just an act. Wasn’t it? He brushed his lips against my skin, moving across my shoulder and up my neck toward my ear, finally stopping to whisper, “You are so beautiful, Solara. I can’t believe I’m here with you. I’ve watched you all night.” Then he planted soft kisses down my neck and onto my shoulder and across upper back.
Mmmmm
. I groaned, leaning back and grabbing the back of his hair with my fingers.

He let loose a growl and quic
kly spun me around to face him. He pulled me close to him and guided my lips toward his own.

“You smell of coconut and lavender.” He breathed. I smiled,
keeping hold of his gaze. He brushed my lips with his thumb, and I parted them in response, gathering a large breath in my lungs.

“Wes,” I started gently, “I reall
y need to get back to my room. I’m going to get in trouble if someone realizes I haven’t returned. Would you please see me back safely?” I whispered.

“On one condition.” He breathed.

“What’s the condition?” I purred, winding my fingers through his soft brown hair.

He groaned again and said, “
Kiss me. Kiss me, and I promise to take you back immediately.”

“Wes, you could get in trou
ble. I’m your student,” I said, closing my eyes, hoping that he wouldn’t push any further.

“I don’t care. I want this, Solara. If
you want this as well, kiss me. I want nothing more than to taste and feel your lips right now,” he said, still swaying me back and forth, holding me tighter, his hands sinking lower on my back, grazing my backside in the process. I’d never been held this way before. It was magical. The effect he was having on me was more than I could comprehend.

“One kiss and we leave, okay?” I bargained. He nodded
in agreement, inching closer to me until our lips were almost touching. He planted a soft, tender kiss on my lips and pulled back a little. Was that it? I started to pull back in preparation to leave when he grabbed my wrists, roughly pushing my back against the gritty stone wall behind me passionately and forcefully parting my lips with his. His tongue mingled with mine. He released my hands from the wall and began to curl his arms around me, searching my body with his hands. He ran his palms up my back and down my hips as he continued to pin me hard against the wall with his passion.

He stopped when someone cleared their throat behind us.
Faric’s intimidating form stood stiff in the middle of the room, hands crossed in front of his chest, brows furrowed, lips tight, and glaring at the two of us. He had told me to do what I had to do, right? Did he forget the pep talk as well? He looked angry. He ran his hand through his hair and said, “Solara, we’re leaving.
Now
!” Motioning toward the door.

I straightened myself and stepp
ed away from the wall, grabbing my swollen lips. “As for
you
”—he stepped forward, poking his finger in Wesley’s chest—“you can stay or go, but
she
is coming with
me
.”

Seriously? He had just ag
reed to leave after kissing me. Okay. Okay. It was quite a kiss, but the details of the kiss were not discussed, and he must have interpreted the terms slightly differently than I had, but truth be told, I thoroughly enjoyed it. My first kiss. Faric stepped out the door, holding it open for me. Wes followed, and we all got back safe and sound. The tension in the early morning air was still palpable.

W
es avoided me during all
of our lessons, calling on Aria and Lillian exclusively, which didn’t hurt my feelings. I hadn’t studied anyway. The days that followed the introduction night dragged on painfully slowly. Rachel came to visit me and Lil almost daily, and all of us tried to steer clear of Aria as usual. I also avoided Miss Annette like the plague—especially since she had kept the information about my parents’ deaths and her raising me secret for basically my entire life. I was angry with her for not trusting me with that personal information.

I did speak with her once, explaining that I felt smothered
being holed up in my room after being let out of the tower for the introduction. She was sympathetic to my claustrophobia and ushered me to a small wooden door just a few down from my own. She took a key from her large ring and placed the cool metal form into my palm. I unlocked the door and swung it outward, revealing a small balcony of sorts. It was a small nook, but I appreciated the fresh air and her trust. She asked that I keep the arrangement between the two of us, and I of course, agreed. She said that I could come out after dark, provided that no one was in the hallway to see me sneak outside. Those terms were easy enough, and I found myself outside on a nightly basis even in the rain. I felt alive, feeling the elements of the earth on my skin, whether it was wind, sun, rain or any combination thereof.

I hadn’t seen Faric since the introduction either. Our parting
was certainly strange. I wanted to talk to him about his reaction to my fake seduction of Wesley but had no idea how to reach him, and I hadn’t seen him patrolling our floor. I couldn’t tell Lil either for fear that Wesley would get in trouble. The fewer people who knew, the better. Rachel knew we had convinced her brother to leave but had been given no details. I was pretty sure that Wes remembered something as evidenced by his constant avoidance of me. I was left with my own thoughts, and they were scrambled with confusion.

Why had Faric gotten s
o angry with me? He was the one who made the suggestion of seduction to begin with. Why was Wesley avoiding me? Was he embarrassed of having kissed me? Did he think I really came onto him, my teacher? Why did I feel guilty about the kiss? Because Faric witnessed it and ultimately interrupted it? And why did I enjoy it so much? Had the alcohol lowered my inhibitions and heightened my pleasure? Or was it simply as good as I remembered?

“Solara, are you okay? I’m reall
y worried about you,” said Lil, catching me after classes before I could sink into the isolation of my holding cell, or bedroom, as they called it.

“Me too,” Rachel interjected, catching up to us. She was staying
with Wesley until the reveal and had joined us in our studies.

I rolled my eyes and g
roaned, turning toward my room. I nodded for them to follow me. So this was what an ambush looked like. Rachel closed my door behind us. I sat on the edge of the bed, Lil sat beside me, and Rachel bounced onto the bed on her knees. “Spill,” ordered Lil, squinting at me and trying to look authoritative.

“Nothing’s wrong,” I tried to persuade. “I’m really dreading the whole forced, arranged marriage thing. It makes me sick. What if we get stuck with an old man or a real jerk? Aren’t you guys the least bit worried?”

Lil exhaled and started, “I gue
ss not. I mean, I am putting my faith in God that he will guide the council to choose the right husband for me. That’s all I can do, Lars. I could sit and worry, but it won’t do any good. It won’t change anything. The council chooses our mates, and as much as I would love to exercise my freewill in the matter, that option is not available. So I guess I’ll just accept their choice and try to make the most of the life I’ve been given.”

Rachel nodded and said, “Yeah,
but I really don’t want to get stuck with some old man either!” She giggled, and we all fell into a fit of nervous laughter. Of course, I couldn’t tell them what was really bothering me—about what had happened with Altair at the introduction, or how I’d finally made Wes agree to leave the pub that night, and Faric’s reactions to both.

Rachel bounced and said, “Hey, have you guys heard that
they are adding more guards for our security. I overheard Miss Annette speaking to Wes about it, and there has been some kind of threat made against us, well, you potentials, anyway.”
What? What kind of threat?

“What kind of threat, Rach?” asked Lil.
She pursed her lips and shrugged. “Not sure, but we are going to see more guards on the floor for sure. There’s one who is tall, dark, and handsome too. He’s paired up with Faric.”

Flabbergasted by this new
revelation, I wondered how this would impact my ability to sneak out to the balcony at night. My chest tightened at the thought of being holed up in this room, squeezing the air out of my lungs. I know the balcony had been a recent blessing, but I was unwilling to relinquish even the smallest freedom at this point.

“All the guards that esc
orted you that night were super-hot!” exclaimed Rachel, earning giggles from us indicating our agreement with the statement.

“Okay, I’ve got to go. Wes
will be wondering where I went after his class. But wait, maybe if he can’t find me, he’ll send Faric and tall, dark, and handsome to come and get me! I think I’ll stay!” She laughed then bounced off the bed and headed toward the door. Lil grabbed my hand and nodded toward the door too.

She stood, releasing my hand
only when she’d walked too far for hers to reach mine. Her hazel eyes said more than she could with words. She was worried, and her eyes said to come to her if I needed to talk. She tucked her blonde locks behind her elfin ear and followed Rachel out the door.

Nightfall. I waited until I heard
Miss Annette’s door close, and things fall silent in her room. I knew she approved of my trips to the balcony but didn’t want to get her in trouble if someone found out—especially with the new security forces roaming around occasionally. I grabbed the cold iron key and padded to the door.
Creak
. Slightly open, I couldn’t see anyone in the area right in front of my door, but my vision was limited. It groaned again as I opened it further to scan the corridor.
Thank goodness!

The hallway was empty. I closed the door as quietly as possible
and snuck down to the balcony doorway. I twisted the key in the heavy iron lock until I heard the click. The old wooden door creaked as I opened it as well but was much louder than mine, and I cringed, tensing my shoulders and prayed that no one had heard. Closing the door behind me, I felt the cool night air surround me, embracing me with its humidity.

The smells of mud and grass
mixed in the light breeze. The night sky was clear, inky with the exception of tiny dotting stars.

The balcony was small, proba
bly ten feet wide and five deep but boasted stone walls that stood taller than I did. Though they prevented me from looking down into the village, they couldn’t block its sounds or the smells wafting up on the breeze.

I could hear people talking as
they walked together beyond the fortress walls, dogs barking, and lively music in the distance. The unmistakable fragrance of roses rode on the breeze. I closed my eyes, painting a picture of all I could sense beyond but was unable to see.

What was that? Oh, no
. The sound of a key turning the lock was nearly drowned out by the thumping of my heartbeat in my ear. I shifted as far as I could into the balcony’s corner, trying to cloak myself in its shadows. The door creaked open slowly, and I tried to quiet my frantic breaths. The heavy door closed with a loud thud. I cringed at the ominous sound.
I never should have come out
here tonight.
The sound of heavy footfalls echoed against the stone stairs and then stopped as they reached the balcony platform—right across from me. Then, my worst nightmare appeared in the soft moonlight, dressed in a guard’s uniform—black pants, shirt, and boots, and all the restraints and weaponry a guard required, attached to his belt. Altair.

He was alone. Realization can smack you in the face at
times.
He
was the tall, dark, and handsome of whom Rachel had referred. I tried to be still and quiet, backed into the dark corner, praying that he wouldn’t find me. I clenched my eyes and teeth.

There was another step, a loud exhale, and then, “Solara. So
nice
to bump into you out here.” I swallowed hard and opened my
eyes, meeting the cold, beady gray eyes glaring back at me. His
lips were curled into a sickening smirk.

“You know, Solara, you aren’
t permitted to be out here. How did you get onto the balcony? Steal a key? Did someone give you a key?” He raised his chin in appraisal as he slowly stepped toward me. I tried to step away from him, walking my hands down the gritty dark gray stones behind me, holding tight to my tongue as I crept backward.

He kept stalking toward me. “There’s nowhere for you to run.
The door behind us is locked. I saw to that when I figured out that you were out here.” He paused, smirking through thin arrogant lips. I didn’t care what he said, I kept moving slowly around the perimeter of the balcony away from him. And I remained silent.
How did he figure out that I was on the balcony?

He stopped, stood still, a
nd watched me put more distance between us. The wind gusted, blowing wisps of hair and the skirt of my long cream-colored linen gown toward him. I remained pressed to the wall. A few leaves and some dirt stirred and swirled in the gusting funnel as it swirled into the small space of the balcony. His eyes raked over my body from head to toe, repulsively.

Bile rose in my throat, and I sw
allowed dryly. “I am a guard on this floor now, Solara, thanks to my father. I felt it necessary to keep an eye on my future bride. Of course, I chose my partner as well. Faric has now learned of the power that father possesses and by extension that I possess as well. He has been put in his place, so to speak, after he so rudely interrupted our time together at the introduction gala.” He began to stalk closer to me again.

“Stay away from me, Altair,” I
threatened, breaking my vow of silence in an instance. My voice cracked at the end of the demand.

He began to chuckle. “Or what
, Solara? What will you do if I refuse to obey
your
command?” He was obviously enjoying toying with me.

He stopped and looked at m
e. His dark brown hair battered his shoulders at the mercy of the wind. He straightened his posture and threaded his fingers together, twisting them outward until his knuckles popped in succession all the while smirking at me with disdain and arrogance.

Then his expression changed.
His smirk melted into a scowl, and he narrowed his eyes at me and stomped quickly in my direction. I ran, trying to get away, but there was nowhere to run.

I fluttered around frantically li
ke a caged bird. He caught my wrist as I tried to flee, jerking me backward. I lost my footing and fell back onto my hip. He towered over me and hissed, “Going somewhere?” Kneeling beside me, he pushed my hair out of my face. His icy fingers brushed my cheek and jaw line before he recoiled. My entire body quaked and my muscles clenched in defiance of his cold touch. “It’s illegal for you to be out here. Are you aware of that?” he asked sternly. I refused to respond, keeping my eyes on him, my jaw clenched. “Are you aware?” he shouted, spittle flying out of his mouth, rage in his gray eyes.

“Yes,” I muttered.

“What? I couldn’t hear you.”

“Yes,” I yelled back.

“As my duty requires, I must detain you, Solara. Stand up. Hands together in front of you,” he ordered, jerking me by my elbow to my feet again.

I shoved my hands out in front of me, wrists together, seething
with hatred. He kept his eyes trained on me as well, but his hand found some thick brown twine hooked to his belt. He wound the coarse rope around and between my wrists before jerking the ends tight against my skin and then securing them in an intricate knot that I had no idea how to loosen. The scratchy rope dug into my skin, and I tried to move my wrists to loosen my bindings, wincing as it cut deeper into my flesh. “Funny thing about this particular knot, Solara. The more you resist, the tighter it becomes,” he said, smirking at me once more.