“It’s been a while, old friend.”

Cade rubbed the bridge of his nose. “This…you. What are you doing here?”

The world around him still seemed a bit blurry, but the man casually reclining against one of his imported cars came into focus a lot faster than the rest. His smirk most of all, poised beneath a pair of darkly tinted glasses which hid the amusement glimmering in his eyes. “You tell me,” he said with a half-hearted shrug.

“Get off my car.” Cade straightened, finally regaining his bearings.

Well, his footing, at least.

“It’s not your car.” The man snorted and shook his head. “I know it’s been a while since you called me, but damn. You’re getting soft, Caeden.”

“What are you—” His voice cut off the moment he pressed a hand to the cool metal of the car’s roof. He couldn’t feel it, not the way he would if this truly was the middle of the night in Streeterville. “Shit.”

The man shook his head again, the leather of his jacket creaking as he folded his arms. “No wonder you called. Do we need to revisit Dreamwalking 101?” He chimed in a rather patronizing sing-song voice, tilting his dark glasses down his nose.

Cade yanked his hand back. Then checked to make sure he was completely dressed before glaring at this unwelcome visitor. He was getting a lot of those today. “You keep saying I called you. I did no such thing.”

“Sure you did.” The man paused, then waved his fingers back and forth. “Eh, okay, maybe I got called on your behalf. My cousin noticed a few things and he told me to check on you whenever you decided to take your siesta.”

“Fine. Let’s get this over with.”

“You know, I remember you being a thousand times friendlier the last time we hung out.”

“I’m pretty sure that was right before the fire. So forgive me for developing an edge.”

A toothy grin spread across the man’s face, glinting in the moonless glow of the Dream Realm. “Ah, but you’ve always had an edge. This is different.” He pushed himself off the car to move closer to Cade. “This,” he said as he gave him a once-over, “is a whole shit ton of denial. Very interesting indeed.”

“Will you just get to the point? What do you even go by these days?”

“Aww, but still so considerate. Thank you, darling. ‘Epiales’ did stop rolling off the tongue somewhere around the seventeenth century, and you’ve always known me as—”

“Annoying.”

“Don’t be rude.” He rolled a shoulder, sending the thick curtain of black hair to his back. With a flick of his hand, a cigarette appeared between his fingers. It lit on the first drag, as it always did whenever he felt like flexing a little dream magic. When his smoke rings blown at Cade made the man stifle a cough, he chuckled. “There. Now we’re even. As I was saying, things have been rumbling through the realms and sending ripples our way. Now, seeing the state you’re in, I have to wonder.”

Cade didn’t want to entertain anything his old friend said. But he also knew better than to dismiss the riddled warnings of his kind. Especially when delivered personally like this. “Alright, fine.” He spread his arms out to the empty street, both in surrender and to check and make sure it actually was empty. “I’m all ears. What the hell are you talking about?”

The man—Epiales, since he forgot to update Cade on this century’s chosen moniker—took one more drag of the cigarette before flicking it to the ground and stomping out the ember. “Word on the street says you got yourself a lovely lady—”

Cade didn’t need to think about it. He just went for it, grabbing Epiales by the collar of his leather jacket and slamming him hard against the car. Even if Cade didn’t feel much of anything in this realm, he knew he did. “Stay the fuck away from her. Do you hear me?”

“And this,” Epiales wheezed with a laugh, his grin wider, “is exactly why my cousin sent me to check on you. Look at you! This is new! This is different.”

Cade immediately let go and took several steps back. “It’s nothing.”

“Bullshit. If that was nothing, then there’s a whole bunch of ‘nothing’ going on that you need to know about. Oh, yeah.” He straightened out his clothes and took his time adjusting the rings on his fingers before elaborating. Another mode of punishment to keep Cade in line.

Or at least keep him waiting.

Epiales cracked his neck. Then sighed. “You’ve got nothing to worry about from me. She’s telling you the truth—she is an absolute virgin in every way. Can’t do much with that, and I wouldn’t even if I could.” He leveled his own deadpan glare at Cade. “Because unlike some people, I remember how to treat my friends.”

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This time, Cade’s laugh was genuine. “You’re not serious.”

“Serious as the plague, Devoy.” Lief didn’t draw his own gun, but he gave the signal to their men to train every weapon on their reluctant host. “If she was important enough to die for, she’s valuable to us.”

“Consider us taking your advice,” Anders quipped with a sudden cheerfulness, undoubtedly sourced from his renewed confidence at having the upper hand. “We’ll make a new heir. Maybe a sibling for him, too, just in case you decide to fuck things up again.”

Oleg chuckled. “An heir and a spare.”

“An heir and a spare, I like it!” All the men, save for Cade and Vic, joined in with a chuckle at the terribly overused joke. “So go on, Devoy. Hand her over to us and consider it a favor that we’re saving you the trouble of dealing with her.”

Cade set his jaw and waited for the old man to stop blathering before slowly turning around to face him again, raising his hands in feigned surrender. “First of all,” he began with a slow, wry smile, “I don’t have to do shit.”

One by one, glowing red dots appeared all over the Haldorsons’ guards. Then the Haldorsons themselves. He waited quietly until full recognition dawned on each and every one of them.

Their guns began to lower.

“Second of all, you’re what, fifty-five? Sixty-five? That’s disgusting.”

“A lot younger than you,” Oleg sniffed. He was the first to fully lower his weapon and even took the added measure to holster it before raising his own empty hands for the benefit of the snipers surrounding their little party. “Besides, Anders wasn’t talking about himself. We already agreed I’d be the one to mate with her.”

Cade couldn’t resist. “Shooting blanks, Anders?”

The Outworldish high lord glared, but didn’t make another move. He knew he’d been outnumbered and outmaneuvered. “Fuck you.”

With a nod from Vic, the red dots rose to each of their heads while more of Cade’s personal guards began to emerge from indoors.

And the bushes.

And pretty much everywhere that had once seemed empty when the Haldorsons arrived.

“Gentlemen.” Cade stepped into their circle and lowered his voice so only they could hear the threatening growl on the edge of his words. “I will overlook this incident as a matter of grief, and pain, and a general yet unfortunate misunderstanding. But let me be clear.”

He trained his eyes on Anders, making sure the high lord both heard and understood the depth of every syllable.

“Come into my home like this again and I will end your so-called Great House before you suck in one more pathetic breath. I will burn your entire estate to the ground and make your bastards eat the ash. Understood?”

Oleg and Lief looked to their eldest brother. It was clear Anders did not want to surrender, but even more obvious than that was what would happen if he didn’t. So, with no small amount of reluctance and rage in his eyes, he slowly nodded once.

“Good. Now go back across the lake and stay there. Any business we have? I will come to you.”

This time, Cade waited for exactly no one before turning on his heel and making his way back into the mansion. Vic assumed control of the clean-up measures, which included all but dragging the three brothers back down the semi-public entrance, out to their car, and ensuring every Haldorson man was identified and off the property in less than five minutes.

Seka met him at the French doors of the main entrance back into the living area, brow arched as she watched everything going on behind him. “Did I miss the party?”

“Where were you?”

“Helping your new house guest settle in. As well as settling the accounts from last night—the monetary accounts,” she clarified with one last glance out at the courtyard crowd. “Everything is up to date, everyone accounted for, and we already have rumors of at least three new pregnancies resulting from the festivities.”

Just like everything else to do with fae mating rituals, instincts moved fast. “Be sure to confirm and send our congratulations. Circumstances not withstanding, it sounds like everything was a success.”

Seka’s serene countenance brightened and spread with a mischievous grin. “Oh, I would say so, Lover Boy.”

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This is going to be fun.

The thought held more trepidation than the words themselves suggested.

Cade got out first, then walked around the vehicle to hold the door open for his wide-eyed guest, nodding once to his chauffeur to go ahead and take the car into the garage once she slid out and he shut the door behind her. He held his arm up for her to hold, which she did with a small frown of confusion. “It gets a little tricky,” he explained.

Which both of them knew wasn’t much of an explanation at all.

To any general passersby, and to anyone who might happen to stumble through the front doors of the building, the foyer opened up into a beautifully vintage lobby where modern technology glowed on marble desks carved from an era of Art Deco and yet, to Elena’s surprise and secret delight, echoed from the Commercial Style of Chicago’s 1890s. The slick tiles of the mosaic floor evoked the feeling of a chessboard without being too rigid or sharp-cornered, so much like other historic buildings she’d been inside and yet somehow unique on its own.

Cade nodded to the desk attendant, who inclined his head with a quiet, “Sir,” before returning to the computer screen. The attendant seemed to either not notice Elena, or he was wise enough to not poke his nose into other people’s business.

Which made sense.

Especially when Cade pulled out a silver skeleton key from his pocket, pushed it into the locked sliding gates blocking the elevator vestibule, and turned.

Something low rumbled within the walls as the mechanism sprang to life around the key. Dozens of spinning cogs interlocked with each other danced out of the lock and embedded into the metal framework of the gates in something that looked almost like a code Elena’s mind definitely tried and failed to decipher, according to the way her brows pinched together and her widened eyes scanned the pattern.

The gates unlatched, then slid open without any assistance.

And the moment the pair stepped into the vestibule, the elevators vanished.

Elena’s eyes bugged and she spun around. Gaped at the solid wall behind them. “Um…Cade?”

“I warned you. It gets tricky.”

The lobby they stepped into seemed identical to the previous one, except this time filled with plants she’d never seen before and sculptures of creatures she could only guess fell into the category of “otherworldly”. An alabaster satyr held a cornucopia of cascading blooms that fell into a bed of shimmering star lilies in shades that did not—or should not—exist. In the center of a trickling fountain, the serene likeness of a mermaid outstretched her arm for the water to flow into the sapphire pool.

Which, if Elena’s guess was correct, happened to be lined with actual sapphires.

The attendant behind this desk—on which there were no computers at all—stood as Cade approached, his focus squarely on the strange woman clutching the taller man’s arm. “G-good morning, Sir. We have a guest today?”

“No.” Cade pulled an envelope from inside his jacket and slid it across the counter. “New resident. She’ll need a key and security. Have Vic assign a contingency for today until we get the staffing arranged.”

“And her quarters?”

“Shared with mine. No need to make things complicated.”

The attendant’s mouth opened in surprise, but he quickly shut it before Cade’s frown deepened any further. Elena, for her part, was far too distracted by the gothic-sloped arched ceilings and chandeliers of actual crystals to catch what her companion had just quietly declared. It was only when the attendant cleared his throat that she noticed him, and the fact that he was waiting for her to put her hand in his. “I’ll need your blood, madame.”

“Sorry, what?”

“Your blood.” The attendant held up a skeleton key just like Cade’s. “For your key. It’s just a tiny prick, I assure you.”

Elena took a half step back. “Why?” She looked to Cade, then back at the waiting man. “Wait…is this some sort of blood magic? Brujo?”

“Oh for the love of…” Cade sighed and leaned against the high desk. “No, this is not ‘blood magic’ like what you’re thinking. And no, he is not a witch or warlock or sorcerer or whatever else you might be accusing him of, and neither am I. Those are forbidden here. He just needs to code your DNA into the metal so you, and only you, can get access to this building. Should you do something stupid like lose your key,” he added, his eyes narrowing.

“Excuse you? ‘Something stupid’? Like dragging me out of my home and forcing me to move in with you?”

Hot pink tinged the attendant’s cheekbones and he very suddenly had some paperwork to skim through in one of the ledgers that required his eyes and ears to shut out this conversation.

Cade bit back a very amused smile. “Just give the man your finger so we can let him get back to work. And then you can yell at me some more when we’re upstairs.”

“I wouldn’t be yelling at all if you weren’t always acting like you’re the boss of me!”

“But I am the boss of you. I hired you. You work for me. That’s kind of how this whole thing works.”

Elena rubbed the bridge of her nose with a long-suffering sigh. “Doing what? Painting?”

“I know you meant that facetiously, but yes. That’s exactly what I hired you for.”

One hard stare at him confirmed there was no point in arguing with him. The man was far too sure of himself and set in his ways for her attempted debate to be worth the wasted breath.

So, the only breath she did give him—loudly, so he could hear the irritation paired with reluctant surrender—was the heavy sigh as she held out her finger for the attendant.

The device and the somewhat painful prick reminded her of the onboarding process at the plasma donation center. A click, a chunk, a brief stab, and then he carefully squeezed the tip of her forefinger to collect a large drop of dark blood into the slender tip of an ampoule. “Here,” he muttered apologetically with a quick dab of a cold, damp cotton ball onto the puncture. “That should do it.”

It…did.

Elena held her fingertip up close to her face just to make sure she saw as much as felt what had just happened.

The blood, and the puncture, were gone.

Completely.

“I can feel a hundred more questions starting to bubble up,” Cade grumbled. “The answer is yes, and then no. Yes, you’re done and healed and we can keep moving along. No, I’m not going to spend any more time explaining how it all works.” He took the proffered key, now marked with Elena’s blood and gave the attendant a polite nod. Then pressed his hand to the small of her back and steered her toward the stairs.

To her great relief—which earned a smirk of amusement from his face when he noticed her shoulders relax—they only went up a single flight of winding stairs before he pressed a golden glowing button for the gated elevator. “For a second there, I thought we’d have to climb the whole way.”

Cade snorted. “As much as I love a little sadomasochism, I’m not that cruel.”

“What do you think?” He asked Elena as she shuffled inside the high-rise penthouse.

“I think you live in a palace.” She said it more like a factual statement than an exaggeration, head turning every which way to take it all in. “I kid you not, I used to think this place was a museum. From the outside, I mean.”

“It kind of is, considering everything in it.” He shrugged off his suit jacket and handed it to one of the staff who walked by. They didn’t do a great job hiding their curiosity over the young woman slowly spinning circles in the foyer. “Remind me to show you the library sometime.”

“Cade.” She paused and watched that same staff member quietly vanish into a door that similarly disappeared once they passed through. “I can’t stay here.”

“We already went over this.”

Elena shook her head. “No. I mean, this…this?” Her arms flew out to the sides. “I’m not from here. From this. I don’t belong in this world. I wouldn’t know what to do with a second fork or know when tea time is, or—”

“Relax, ælfscíene. This is temporary. After I take care of some business, you can go back to whatever hovel your heart desires.”

Relief slumped her posture. “Really?”

“No.”

He didn’t have time for this. He definitely did not have time to play host to a human who didn’t know just how royally fucked their situation could become if he didn’t play their cards exactly right.

It was one thing carrying her unconscious body to her apartment—Seka in tow—only to find Elena lived in what amounted to a cereal box with assemble-by-number furniture probably fished out of some flea market dumpster. Cade tried to be all judgmental about it, noting the lack of matching silverware in the kitchen drawers and the threadbare coverlet on her bed…but deep down, it outright bothered him.

She deserved better.

He wanted her to have better.

Which was easy enough to dismiss with a stern internal reminder of why he never let himself become seriously involved with human women. Or anyone, for that matter. After stepping into the outer hallway to let Seka take care of the clothing change, he decided that this would be the closure they both needed to move on.

Unfortunately, a whole new problem arose bright and early this morning in the form of a text from Vic to meet him in the study. Eric’s father and uncles, associates from Detroit, had arrived to politely but firmly demand an explanation as to why their son and heir wasn’t answering his phone.

They knew why.

Cade knew they knew why.

But they wanted to hear it from him before launching into actions that could stir up war between the families. So, he negotiated a deal to give himself enough time to provide them solid answers while tying up loose ends.

The biggest one being Elena Martín.

“There are a few house rules I need you to understand, and then I have to get back to work.” He pressed his hand to her back and ushered her through the foyer to the main drawing room, but didn’t stop to allow her time to admire all the details. “Consider this your tour.”

Elena nodded. Looked around. Kept her sugary mouth shut.

Good. I can work with this.

“My private rooms are upstairs and down the west wing. The left,” he added with a sigh at her confused expression. “West is left, east is right, just…if you need any help, ask anyone in a uniform. My private study is in that same section and off-limits to everyone. Including you.”

“Okay.”

He wasn’t sure if he liked how easily she accepted that, but he shrugged it off and continued. “The kitchen is back here; there’s a professional chef and cooking staff but you can help yourself at any time. If there’s anything you need, just let Heather know.”

“Who’s Heather?”

“Housekeeping. Head of, I mean.”

“Ah.”

“Down that hall is the main study, where I hold most of my meetings and conduct general business. You may enter only if you have a legitimate reason. I don’t like being disturbed.”

Again, Elena remained silent yet attentive. She nodded at his remarks, seemed to absorb the navigation, and didn’t flicker any sort of protest in her sweet face. Which felt…odd.

“Any questions?”

“Yeah.” She blinked up at him. “How much is this gonna cost me?”

Now Cade became the silent one, unsure of what the living hell she meant. “Come again?”

“All this. Private chef, housekeeping, I’m assuming there’s a personal trainer, too—”

“There is, but not for you.” The thought of another man resting a finger on her sweaty body instantly made his blood pressure spike.

“Right. Okay. Even so,” she scoffed, “there’s no way you’re letting me, or making me, stay here for free. It’s gotta cost something, right?”

His brain urged him to breeze through this with some half-assed explanation and get going.

His heart felt the sting of her implication.

Everything below his belt, however?

“What do you want to pay me with?” A lazy smile slowly spread across his face, and he felt himself lean into her personal space before he could stop himself. “I’m happy to negotiate.”

Fear ignited within her amber eyes. So did desire. Her plump lips parted and for a very powerful second Cade resisted the urge to suck that bottom lip between his teeth just to taste her again.

He’d already failed to resist that same temptation earlier. What kind of message would he be giving her if he kept giving in?

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Be cool.

Just…be cool.

Do not. In any way. Freak out.

Silently chanting this in her head was easier; it became a mantra that kept her calm enough to graciously accept the water offered by the office receptionist and take a seat on the luxurious couch by the window.

Which was basically the entire wall of this gigantic lounge.

Of course Cade Devoy attended meetings—or held them, whichever this may be—in skyscrapers filled with opulence and dripping with wealth. Even the velour of the couch felt like money and prestige, too posh for Elena’s broke ass to perch upon.

But perch she did, because it helped her hide from the receptionist’s questioning gaze.

It came at absolutely no surprise when every woman who laid eyes on Cade quickly did a double-take, flashed sweet smiles, batted flirtatious lashes, and practically purred their offers of assistance if he so happened to glance in their direction. Shoot, even the male guard down at the main lobby seemed interested in him, what with the winking and the grinning.

Again, everyone from the guard to the lady behind the marble desk Elena tried not to stare at exuded prestige. Status. The ability to afford apartments with actual bedrooms.

One day…

Elena scoffed at herself. Not even “one day”. The life of a successful artist, the life she aspired for, would be filled with splattered paint and reinvestments of sold pieces into more paint, more supplies, renting a larger studio…while probably still keeping her old one for some place to sleep and not smell turpentine.

She glanced out the glass wall to admire the crystal-clear view of the city.

Okay.

Maybe she’d swing for a studio with a much better view than Mrs. Garbinson’s back alley dumpsters.

Elena picked up her phone to check her student account for the fiftieth time since Cade told her to wait here. And, for the fiftieth time, the same PAID IN FULL notification in bold green font sat next to her zeroed-out account balance.

How was this possible? Didn’t it say she still owed money last week?

That wasn’t including the tips from last night, which she’d quickly and discreetly counted in a reception restroom stall after Cade greeted his hosts and left with them.

$3,500.

How?!

So between that, the weird scholarship Cade somehow managed to wrangle for her at the drop of a hat, and being surrounded by nothing but luxuries of the upper echelon?

Yeah. Elena needed a mantra to not start hyperventilating into a paper bag.

Especially with the strange dreams from the night before that still tugged at the corners of her memory. Nothing she could truly put her finger on, but there was something that echoed and flashed and made every other little thing feel more intense than it probably would have if she wasn’t losing her mind.

Deep laughter rumbled down the hall from an opening door. An older man in a linen suit stepped out, followed by Cade and another man she also didn’t recognize. Between the three, Cade appeared the most casual in a classic linen suit fitted for the pier as much as the office—and yet, somehow, he still managed to evoke an air of power superseding the other two. Maybe it was how he towered by a good few inches over them. Maybe it was how he didn’t join their laughter, just simply nodded and quirked a small smile for effort.

When his silver eyes locked on hers, Elena felt her face instantly heat and she returned to the solitaire app on her phone.

“Well, it’s like I said, Devoy.” The first man walked sideways so he could continue talking to Cade while leading them to the reception lounge. “We have three other interested buyers and we’re going to need a lot more collateral to even begin considering your offer.”

“Which is so strange, considering how everything was set to sign a week ago. On cash.” Cade’s smile remained calm and cool, but the warning in his gaze shifted silver to steel. “It’s like these buyers popped out of nowhere.”

“One we had already spoken with about a year ago, but they rescinded their offer until they were able to regain some capital. The other, well…” The man shrugged and chuckled again. “What can I say? The market can be a real bitch sometimes.”

Cade’s brow lifted ever so slightly. “Yes. Yes, it can.” He turned to Elena and held out his hand, which she took as a cue to play along. “Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to Elena Martín, my new artist-in-residence.”

The second man scoffed. “For a second there, I thought you were going to say she’s your new girlfriend!”

“And if she is?”

Elena subtly cleared her throat so she didn’t choke on her own spit. What.

“Artist, huh?” The first man winked at her, then nodded at a large oil painting hanging on the wall next to them. “You must be familiar with Vermeer.”

She smiled and decided indulging his good intentions would be the best option. Pretend like you belong here. “Yes, he’s a classic. It’s a great replica.”

The man’s smile tilted. “Oh, no,” he scoffed, “this is an original. Curated from Sotheby’s and acquired for over thirty million.”

Now Elena did openly choke on her spit, right before she covered her mouth and feigned a cough. “Wow. What a…” She glanced up at Cade, who’d slipped his arm around her waist and now signaled with a press of his fingers that this was their cue to leave. “What a steal!” She finished with a bright laugh. “Lovely to meet you.”

They nodded, muttered their agreements and obligatory farewells, and watched her leave with Cade Devoy, who did not pause to speak with anyone else regardless if they tried.

Whether he figured this would be the short meeting he expected, or he texted his driver to start the car by the time they reached the front doors, Elena was still surprised—and impressed—to see said car waiting for them right on time. The driver slid out, opened the back door for them, and Cade ushered her inside before joining her.

Only once the door closed and the driver pulled them away did he start talking. “Are you sure? It’s a fake?”

“Yeah.” Elena shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “They didn’t get the signature right. It’s missing the ‘I’.”

He blinked at her. Then snorted a laugh while shaking his head. “I can’t wait to lord this over him. Varriday’s been an insufferable asshole ever since he bought that thing.”

“Varriday?”

“Robert Varriday, CEO of Varridian Enterprises and the current thorn in my side.” He pulled out his phone and began tapping a message. “I’d love nothing more than to knock him down a few pegs. Or down the whole fucking ladder.”

“Then why meet with him?”

“Because he has something I want.”

Elena waited for him to expand further, but Cade was too engrossed in texting whoever-it-was to explain. When it became clear he didn’t plan on filling in that blank, she sighed and watched the city life float by. “So…what did you mean by saying I’m your new ‘artist-in-residence’?”

“That.” Cade hit SEND and tucked his phone back into his jacket pocket. “You’re new. You’re an artist. And you’re living in my residence.”

That made her snort as well. “No, I am not.”

“Yes, actually, you are.”

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Sunlight streamed through the slats of her studio apartment window, making it impossible for Elena to steal a few more minutes of sleep.

Her head hurt.

Muscles ached.

Nothing alarming made her jump out of bed to check in the mirror, but she still wondered what the actual heck happened the night before? She didn’t even drink that much. Partying and getting smashed wasn’t her scene.

Nightclubs definitely weren’t her scene.

Ugh…

A quick glance to either side of her tiny twin bed confirmed at least one thing: she was home, alone, with no one there. And no evidence of anyone being there, like taking a shower or cooking breakfast.

Something twisted in her heart at the emptiness that should have felt comforting. Was she disappointed that Cade hadn’t stayed?

Wait…how did she get home in the first place?

Elena groaned as she slowly sat up, rubbing her temples until the pressure in her head subsided enough to stand on her feet. Wobbly feet, but functional enough to shuffle to the kitchen. Coffee would be required before she could mentally retrace her steps from last night.

She froze mid-step.

When did she change into her sleep shirt?

A fresh wave of dread washed over her as she glanced around the small apartment for signs of a struggle, discarded clothing, anything that would tell her what/who/how this happened. She couldn’t remember leaving The Solarium. She couldn’t remember getting home, or fumbling with her keys, or stripping off her clothes and slipping on the soft shirt that now hung to her knees and cheerfully announced, “Coffee saves lives”.

But there were no kicked pants, or a tossed tunic shirt or even a discarded bra.

Elena grabbed her breasts.

No bra.

A quick shimmy of her hips relieved the worst of her fears—at least she still had panties on.

She was about to grab her phone when someone knocked on her door. Heart suddenly in her throat, she tiptoed to see who it was through the peephole. It didn’t sound like Maintenance’s heavy thumping, or even the super’s…

A silver eye peered back through the hole.

Elena felt her blood pressure instantly skyrocket. But despite her shaky fingers, she managed to open the door. “Hi.”

“Good morning.” Cade thrust a large iced coffee at her and used the momentum to shoulder his way into her apartment. “Glad to see you up and about. I come bearing magic elixir for that headache you undoubtedly have.”

She frowned, but took the coffee. One sip made her instantly forgive him—he knew to make it a mocha. “How did you know?”

“Side effect of attending events at The Solarium without a club membership. The drinks can get a little…tricky.”

“Was I drugged?”

The way he froze in place, just for half a second, gave her a far more honest answer than what came from his mouth. “You were safe.” Cade busied himself by looking around the small studio, flipping open cupboards and poking into her fridge. “We made sure nothing happened to you.”

“Except something did happen to me.” She swept a hand over her body when he frowned at her over the fridge door.

“Ah. That.” He quickly nodded, shut the door, and took a long swig of his own coffee. There was no hiding the way he gave her a deliberate once-over, though. “That was all Seka. Lady to lady, because I am a gentleman.”

Elena narrowed her eyes. “Why do I only believe half of that?”

“Because it’s half true.” He plucked a book from her floating bookshelf and flipped it open—then bit back a chuckle when she snatched the obvious diary from his fingers and stuffed it under her pillow. “I’m hardly a gentleman.”

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Cade struggled to open his eyes.

They shouldn’t feel so heavy. So impossible. He wasn’t…Shit.

Did he fall asleep?

No. Cade Devoy never did that. He would never fall asleep in his own nightclub, especially not when hosting one of those functions that required constant diligence to corral the bullfuckery fae orgies tended to create.

Sure enough, the real event was well underway by the time he was able to pry his eyelids open and blink back the blur. His private booth kept him at a safe distance from the writhing mass of moaning, sweating bodies, but he could still see them and they could see him.

“Welcome back,” purred the woman nestled in his arms.

He blinked at her. He expected to see his fiery artist but instead was met with someone completely different. “Who the fuck are you?”

She stretched her arm around him in a feigned yawn and batted her long, iridescent lashes at him. “Mariana, remember? Ryla said you requested me.”

He did. Just not for this. “Alright, get up.” He resisted the urge to throw her off despite the fact that her touch made him feel nauseous. He may have been ruthless, but he wasn’t an asshole. Not completely.

“What’s wrong?” Mariana straightened but didn’t bother to move out of the booth. Or out of his way. “Need me to grab you another drink?”

Cade peered at the empty glasses on the table. There were only two—one for him, and one for Elena.

He didn’t drink enough to feel this inebriated.

“Get out.” Now he did nudge her harder so she’d get the message. “Move.”

Mariana pouted but obeyed, even though she took her sweet time doing it. When she finally slid out of the way, he shoved past her and headed straight for the bar. Or at least he tried to.

The room went kind of…diagonal.

His mind scrambled for the most plausible explanation, which only worsened his balance. No one would dare spike his drink, of that much he was certain. To do so was not only wildly immature and stupid, it created an immediate death sentence for whoever came up with the idea. An even slower, more painful execution for the one who slipped the potion into his cocktail. Everyone knew this.

He blinked a few times. His sight kept blurring. Finally, he managed to slam his hands against the counter and braced himself before he tripped over one of the stools. “Water. Now.”

Someone thrust an ice cold can of water into his outstretched hand, opened and ready for him to chug. Which he did. Whatever this was, he needed to flush his system so he could go hunt down whoever did this to him.

“You don’t look so good.” The bartender peered at Cade. “You feeling okay?”

“No,” he croaked back. Chugged more water. Slammed the can down. “Who mixed my drink?”

The bartender paled at his glare and took a half-step back. “I did. Exactly as you ordered it.”

Cade trusted him. He’d been employed with the organization for years and never once gave anyone reason to doubt him for anything. And, like a wise person should, he valued his life. “Who gave you my order?”

“Ryla. A MoonBeam for you, and a Special Milky Way for the human.”

Fuck.

Cade sucked down the last of the water and pointed the empty can at him. “Grab her. Put her in lockdown. Tell Seka we’ll deal with her later, but she is not allowed to leave this building. Understood?”

He gave his boss one firm nod and quickly darted away to take care of it. No questions asked.

Cade ignored the outstretched arms and moaning pleas for him to join the orgy, focused instead on finding Elena. She was nowhere to be found, not in his booth nor among the writhing mass of hungry mouths and gyrating limbs. If it were anyone else, he wouldn’t care—but this was his nightclub and his responsibility. Elena Martín was supposed to be under his protection simply by association.

She was supposed to be in his arms, asleep or awake.

If you hadn’t left her before…

He shook off the nagging sense that this could have been prevented. No. He made the right call the first time, when he decided it was best for her safety—and his sanity—to keep her as far away from him and his life as possible. As humanly possible, so the phrase went.

Wasn’t this moment proof that he was right?

Vic met him at the top of the stairs. He’d never been one for Midsummer orgies, so he was still fully clothed and on duty. “She left,” he said before Cade could take the first step down to the lounge.

Several curses he hadn’t uttered in eons flew from his mouth before it snapped shut in a tight grimace.

“Grab your coat.” Cade glanced around the room for Seka, but his head began to spin again and focusing hurt more than giving up. He winced and motioned for Vic to follow him. “Let’s go.”

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I want to be his.

She wanted to be responsible.

I want to be his.

She wanted to slap him hard across the face and yell at him for pulling one over her and then having the absolute balls to even think he could flirt and fondle his way out of it.

I want to be his.

Elena didn’t know what the heck she wanted.

Except a drink. Dios mio, did she need a drink.

“All done!”

The announcement blurted from his mouth out of freaking nowhere. He plopped the brush back into the bowl, leaned back into the couch, and spread his arms again like before. “What do you think?” Cade asked with a broad grin.

I think you just gave me whiplash.

She glanced down at her chest. It was covered in streaks and swirls of gold, with a few patterns mimicking the tattoos on his neck. “It’s…beautiful!” She breathed a laugh. “It’s actually really beautiful!”

He chuckled. Such a completely different sound coming from him and Elena almost—almost—forgot the part where she needed to keep him at arm’s length. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

A new kind of heat bloomed in her cheeks. “I didn’t mean…I mean, ah…”

“I need to return upstairs.” Again, his lane change was abrupt and unexpected. At least he had the decency to help her off his lap and back onto her feet like a gentleman. “Thanks for the glitter job.”

“That’s it?”

Cade turned his head to look at her. Like he was waiting for her to lob the exact barrage of accusations and insults she’d been rehearsing for weeks. But when Elena simply stared at him, mouth parted yet unmoving, his own mouth twisted into that irritating, self-assured smirk.

“Plan on packing up and joining us for a few drinks?” He moved into her space again. Far too close. Way too intimate. When his fingers wrapped around hers, he lifted them to his lips. Pressed a soft kiss. “We have a lot to catch up on.”

Elena melted.

“I, ah…” She cleared her throat and quickly shook her head. “I’m sorry. I’ve still gotta work this gig. I mean, help Seka and all. Thanks, though.”

“Thanks”?! That’s the best you got??

“Pity.” He lowered her fingers but didn’t let go of her hand. “Well, when you change your mind, come find me.”

A thousand arguments and reproaches floated through her head, starting with how that should be a massive “if” and not a “when”, but they all dissolved when he brushed another kiss to the back of her hand.

Then abruptly turned and left.

Elena just stood there. Wondered if anyone would notice if she just collapsed right there and stared at the ceiling for a few hours. Because that sounded like a wonderful idea.

She was still standing there in complete bewilderment when Vic returned. “Elena? Everything all right?”

He must have seen the way her face instantly flushed. Eyes wide. Legs wobbly. Her cheeks burned hotter when she shook her head, then quickly corrected it with a nod. She didn’t know how to answer that. “Everything’s great! I’m ready for whoever’s next.” On a second thought, she realized how rushed and rude she must have sounded. “How was your break?”

Vic’s brow pinched the tiniest of measures, but he didn’t call her out on her bullshit. “It was good. Party’s really kicking off.” He glanced at the table covered with her supplies. “Did you want to go up for a while? Get a few drinks?”

“Nah, I should stay here.” She waved a hand to dismiss the temptation. Even though a drink sounded like exactly what she needed. “Got a job to do.”

After a beat, he smiled. “Boss says you’re done for the night.”

She froze. Did he mean Seka? Or was this from Cade, who would absolutely pull some invisible string like this to get what he wanted?

Crap. Was she just canoodling with one of Seka’s guests while the security cameras watched?

Elena’s blood chilled and she quickly started counting all the money she was definitely about to lose because she couldn’t keep her own hormones in check. “Are you sure? Is she sure? Seka wants me to leave?”

“Oh! No, nothing like that.” Vic’s smile brightened and he walked over to help her pack up her things. “In fact, I hear your paycheck’s been doubled. Boss says everyone has absolutely loved you and the turnaround for the charity portion is way more than expected. You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like.”

She nearly wheezed when she hear the word “doubled”. There were a few bills she’d been neglecting that this gig just officially covered, and she wasn’t even done counting her tips.

Maybe she wouldn’t need to remind Cade about his promise after all.

Well…not right away, at least. Tuition didn’t pay itself, but at least the past due phone bill would get caught up.

“I could use a drink,” she quietly admitted, more to herself than to Vic.

“Why don’t you go on up? I got this.” He gently nudged her aside and started zipping up her brush bag. “Besides, the drinks are on the house tonight. Open bar, no limits, full security. And just let me know if you need me to call you a ride for home, you got that?”

She liked Vic. He seemed like good people—paternal, in a way. Like an uncle or older brother. She definitely don’t miss the protective hint in his voice. “Thanks, Vic. Really. I won’t be up there long.”

He scoffed like he didn’t believe her. Glanced down at the sparkling symbols on her neck. “Take your time.”

Downstairs was a quiet space to relax, rejuvenate, and relieve oneself of everything going on upstairs.

Upstairs was a whole other realm.

A sea of jumping, gyrating, grinding bodies covered in sweat and glitter made up the whole dance floor from one wall to the next. The music felt more like a full-body vibration than actual song, pulsating with every heartbeat and pushing the sea into tidal waves of laughter and moans.

Elena had never been to a charity event like this before.

Of course the bar needed to be located on the completely opposite side of the room. No way to get around the dance floor, and no other beverage options were to be found no matter how hard she looked or how high she tried to hop to see over the mass of heads and shoulders blocking her view.

She did, however, spot the display tables of information she expected at a more…she would say, “normal” function. There were a few cardboard cutouts and trifold brochures propped up on folding tables, most of them featuring the smiling face of a woman hugging a small child.

Must be the people they’re feeding. Or housing. To be honest, she forgot what the charitable cause was for.

Elena began to shoulder her way through the dancers, doing her best not to get caught up in their attempts to pull her into the fray. She recognized many of the faces that turned to smile and grin at her, some with genuine happiness while others eyed her with desire. And hunger. And glints of things that made her want to get through a lot faster.

The crowd started squeezing around her.

Pushing.

Pulsing.

Groping.

I don’t want this.

A man sneered at her, winking above a perfect set of white teeth that seemed almost too sharp when they glinted in the disco light. He reached for her, holding out his hand for her to take, but she felt herself get nudged and wedged deeper into the mass.

I don’t want to be here.

Alcohol on a woman’s breath fanned across her cheek and traveled to her neck, the woman herself giggling and moaning an invitation to “join us” as she tried to slip her fingers through Elena’s.

I don’t—

Silver eyes meet hers.

They instantly sharpened with awareness, set above a familiar jaw that tensed and ticked as he started to shove his way through. He was all the way across the floor but seemingly determined to get to her, moving and pushing people out of his way.

“Glitter Girl!”

One of the guys who’d come downstairs with his girlfriend cut in front of Elena, a drunken grin plastered on his bronzed face. “You joined us! Excellent! Can I get you a drink? Or do you,” he lowered his voice into a lusty growl as his hands wrapped around her waist, “want to dance?”

Panic lanced through her. She didn’t want to dance. She didn’t want his hands on her. “I just want a drink, thanks.”

“Aw, come on. You’re so beautiful!”

“Thanks,” she tried to laugh as she edged away from his tightening grasp. “But I’m just really thirsty—”

“I’ve got something you can drink.” He pressed up behind her at the same time he pulled her hard against him. “Shall we go back downstairs?”

She turned hard to wrench herself free.

And that’s when she saw a hand clamp down on his shoulder.

“Dominic.” Cade yanked hard to make her unwanted dance partner spin around and face him. “Are you blind? Or just unable to fucking read?”

Dominic chuckled, but Elena could tell he wasn’t as confident as he appeared five seconds ago. “The hell are you talking about?”

“Look again, dumbass.”

He did. More at her neck and collarbone than anywhere else. He squinted and leaned in closer, but only as close at that vice grip would allow. And then he swallowed hard. “I-I’m sorry, man. I couldn’t see in all this light.”

The arched brow told both of them that Cade wasn’t buying it. “Now you can. Back off. Go find your woman. Or should I let her know what you’re up to?”

Dominic vanished into the crowd. It was almost impressive how quickly he disappeared.

Elena’s pseudo-savior grabbed her hand tight. “Don’t let go,” he said loud enough in her ear for her to hear over the music. “And don’t take anything anyone gives you.”

“Including you?”

He glared at her. Then that impish grin broke across his handsome face. “We’ll see,” was his cryptic reply.

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Elena blinked at him.

“I…I’m sorry?” She finally managed to squeak. And then, after another pause, her stare sharpened into a glare. “You must be out of your mind.”

That cold smile he’d threatened the other guys with suddenly brightened and widened and melted into something far more impish. Cade moved behind her, sat down on the couch, and spread his arms…

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Cade hated social events.

Despised them, really.

He hated the schmoozing. The flouncing. The fake flattery and tittering laughter that grated inside his head worse than nails on an old chalkboard.

Then again, there was nothing a good drink…or several…couldn’t fix.

“I’m holding you to it, Cade.” Seka wagged her finger in his face with all the confidence of someone who knew he wouldn’t chop it off. For now. “Open bars are expensive as hell. If you stick me with the bill—”

“I said I’m covering it, yeah?” He wrapped his hand around hers and lowered that accusatory finger. But he didn’t let go, not while she insisted on zipping around the place in a frenzy. “I already took care of the first half.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You better. Last year’s debacle ended up with me practically having to sell half my house just for the damage, let alone the consumption! Because where were you? Huh?”

Cade refused to acknowledge the heat rising in his face. “I was…preoccupied. With our guests.” A pair of very limber, very eager, and very beautiful guests. “Tonight will go smooth. Stop worrying. A few drinks, a few games, some loud music—everyone will have a great time! You’ll see.”

“There’s a lot I’d rather not see, thank you.”

He chuckled and finally let go of her hand. After all these years, and how many Midsummer Night parties? Seka knew what to expect, and she was “guilty” of participating in more than a few delectable orgies once the liquor hit her system. But at the same time, Cade couldn’t blame her for not wanting to see the naked asses of people they’d both have to negotiate serious business deals with the next morning.

“I left my check with your office, by the way.” He wandered over to one of the art pieces in the room and touched a finger to the sharp tip of a gold leaf suspended from one of the wall lamps. It wasn’t enough to make him bleed, which was somewhat disappointing.

“I heard. Thank you.” She smoothed out her bodycon dress and cleared her throat. Her thick sable hair was finally starting to grow longer out of the shaved faux hawk fade she’d insisted on getting a few months ago; it gave her overall appearance a sexy-yet-intimidating edge she’d need for the night’s festivities. Paired with her perfectly sculpted brows that arched over dangerously glinting amber eyes, Seka Derringer was more hunter than prey in any given situation.

Cade wondered if it was on purpose.

He often wondered if she, like him, refused to revisit The Old Days of being someone else’s victim.

Seka whipped her attention to one of Cade’s personal picks for guards, Vic, who they both spotted waving at her from down the hall. “Looks like our artist is here. I need to go make her comfortable.”

For the briefest of moments, Cade felt his throat close. He managed to clear it before scratching out, “Artist?”

“Yeah.” She shrugged a casual shoulder and focused on something on her phone. Like she was avoiding his gaze. “You know, entertainment. We’re still fundraising for that charity program, after all. I figured it’d be a good idea to hire someone to sweeten the pot.”

“Mhm.” He narrowed his eyes at her, but couldn’t pick out anything betraying that shenanigans were afoot. “Right.”

“Right. So, be good.” Seka tapped her phone screen off and shot him a warning Look over her shoulder as she went to join Vic. “I mean it, Cade. We’ve got a lot riding on this.”

As if she needed to remind him.

Tonight wasn’t just a celebration of seasonal changes and celestial solstice—although that was the origin of the annual shindig—but rather a giant window of opportunity to gather as much blackmail and bargaining material as humanly…and inhumanly…as possible. The guest list Seka confirmed with him a week ago included three district court judges, two city hall clerks, the police commissioner, and a mayoral candidate whose campaign was in desperate need of a financial benefactor.

All humans.

All completely susceptible to—and unaware of—the kind of fae magic that surged and seeped through the pores of all who felt the solstice’s energy shift.

A few innocent drinks were enough to loosen tongues so secrets would spill into the ears and recorders Cade made sure to set up in every corner of building.

A few more drinks, this time laced with drops of essences not found in the Outworld (but heavily bargained for with a bouncer who traveled between realms often enough) ensured that every word that tumbled from intoxicated lips would only be the truth.

Whatever happened after all the alcohol and soul-spilling was entirely up to the human. In Cade’s experience, they almost always wound up in exceptionally compromising positions that required some considerable detangling the next morning. While not the most pleasant to look at, to Seka’s point, this was the most ideal outcome with the more corrupt politicians who delighted in Cade’s generous hospitality. All he had to do was show them a few choice pictures on his phone whenever they started getting difficult, and suddenly they were more than happy to cooperate.

The one hard and non-negotiable rule of all these events was consent.

Cade Devoy forbade the theft of consent on pain of death.

Sure, there were many potions and essences from the Otherworld constantly smuggled into Chicago, and far be it from him to police it. In many ways, he didn’t outright care. But when it came to things that went on inside his house, his establishments specifically, and under his own nose?

No one dared to play that game. He forbade it, and that was that.

“Cade.” One of his “business associates”, Milo, broke him out of his reverie and greeted him with a strong handshake and a clap on his shoulder. “Good of you to be here.”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Lies. Cade slid his crafty gaze to the fae with the tiniest of smirks. “And I need to empty a few accounts before tax season.”

Milo shook his head with a good-natured sigh. “I keep telling you, you’re wasting your skills in real estate. You should be consulting with financial investors.”

“And make them wealthier than me? Absolutely not.”

Cade nodded to the waiting DJ to go ahead and start playing music. It was seven o’clock on the dot, and he hated delays.

“Drinks are on me tonight.” He returned the shoulder pat with his own. “I don’t want you sober by the time we’re done.”

He grinned at Cade, the golden lamplight glinting on his sharp incisors. “You got it.”

As more people came in through the nondescript front door, the overhead lights began to dim and the spinning disco ball descended from a slot in the ceiling. A few of the guests beelined for the bar once they saw the sign green-lighting unlimited imbibing; others stumbled excitedly onto the dance floor to warm up with their partners.

Cade decided this was the time to become antisocial and assume his favorite chair in his favorite booth in the far corner of the venue. No one would bother him with their questions unless he allowed them to. No one would approach him unless he gave the signal that they were allowed.

He wasn’t going to. He was not in the mood.

His gaze kept flicking to the hallway where a set of stairs led to the lower level.

Stop it.

Chicago was filled with artists from all over the world. Seka most likely hired some down-on-their luck savant just to boost their morale and their wallet; she had a soft spot for things like that.

The chances that she—

No.

He rubbed a hand over his face. Let it go. Get a drink.

Gods knew he needed several drinks in order to stop thinking about her.

He couldn’t afford to think about her tonight. He couldn’t juggle the ache in his chest with the heat surging beneath his skin or the plans in place to secure stronger footing within Chicago’s political infrastructure.

One flick of his fingers was all it took for one of the bartenders to approach his booth with a slight bend at the waist. “What can I get for you, sir?”

“Bourbon. Neat.” He drummed his fingers on the table, feeling increasingly unsettled as time ticked forward. “Make it two.”

“Coming right up, sir.”

Cade suspected he might need a keg of the stuff before the night was through.

The first tumbler of bourbon was enough to ease the itch. The second started to numb the edges of the ache in his heart—no, his chest.

“Another,” he told the waiting barkeep. “And keep them coming.”

“Caedon-waydon, won’t you come dance with me?”

He was drunk, but not that drunk.

“Why don’t you dance for me, babydoll?” He smoothed his hand over her hip as she sidled onto his lap. It was difficult to tell which was stronger, the liquor on her breath or the perfume on her neck.

Whatever-her-name-was giggled and purred and slid her bony ass closer. “Mmmm, you’d love that, wouldn’t you?”

“You know it.”

His playful nip at her nose earned him an annoying peal of laughter. Her playful attempt to kiss him was dodged by a smooth sip of his third…ieth…bourbon. When she tried again, he tucked his arm around her and offered the glass tumbler to her lips.

“Good stuff.” He gave her hip a naughty squeeze and weighed the cost benefits of giving in to her ploy for his more intimate affections. He couldn’t remember her name, but he vaguely remembered she’s a hellcat in bed.

It helped she also somewhat resembled—

Nope. Cade immediately sat up straighter and set the fae woman down on the seat next to him.

“You okay?” She furrowed her brow as she pressed her hand to his chest. “You’re acting all jumpy.”

He scoffed and grabbed for his drink. “The hell are you talking about?”

But she was right, now that he focused on it. About as much as his sloshing brain would allow him to. Just when he finally felt that stupid pressure in his chest fade away completely, Whatsherface had to plop down on his lap and flare it up all over again.

Worse than before.

“Maybe we should hit the dance floor.” Whatever he needed to do to take his mind off things. He nuzzled her neck and added a whisper to his offer. “I’ll show you my moves now…and later.”

She took the bait. Believed the lie. Giggled and led him by the hand to the overcrowded dance floor before she was suddenly swept away by her friends, their suspicious stares darting between the woman and their dangerous host.

Okay, maybe it wasn’t a total lie. All things considered, Cade still had needs and desires and probably would want to get his rocks off after his obligations of the evening were said and done. It’d be the perfect distraction from…other things.

Like the memories of a certain lush-lipped artist he swore he’d never see again.

That was his gift to her. Because damn it all, she managed to make him care.

And caring about anyone meant making sure he kept his tainted life far the fuck away from them.

Cade blinked. He’d been making his way through the dance floor, lost in his thoughts, when the disco and strobe lights started sparkling off the guests. Half of them were covered in glitter. Golds, silvers, fuchsias, some with rainbows shimmering down their arms…the disco ball was starting to look dim compared to Seka’s guest list.

He caught the eye of one of the guards. Noticed the silver streaks sparkling along his jaw. “Not you, too?”

Dan smiled sheepishly and shrugged as Cade approached him. “When in Rome, right? Besides, it’s for a good cause.”

“Please tell me the others—”

The question was both cut off and answered by the guffawing of three of Cade’s other men. Cillian, Eric, and Sid knocked back a round of beers and jostled for their wallets as they shuffled toward the top of the stairs. One of Seka’s assistants negotiated the bidding war; they all laughed and played along until a price was agreed upon, and then they stuffed cash into the lock box without hesitation.

It’s Cade who felt hesitant.

No.

Protective.

…Of what?

“What’s downstairs?” He asked Dan. Something deep down warned him that the correct word was who.

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Elena checked the address in the text again.

No, she did get it right.

But how? Seka said the event was at The Solarium Hotel, 7 p.m. and across the street from Luca’s Coffee. Elena frowned as she glanced across that very street where, sure enough, Luca’s was closing up shop for the day.

The building her navigation app pinged just didn’t look like a hotel.…

Read more

• Tensions build and heat rises after an exhilarating escape

• She starts figuring out…he really, truly, undeniably isn’t…human

The numbers on the pages didn’t mean shit to him, no matter how many times he flipped the leaflet back and forth. “Fine. Do it.”

His Right Hand straightened her shoulders. “You’re sure?”

“Yes. No. Fuck.” Cade ran a hand through his hair and considered pulling it all out. Or using the grip to slam his forehead into the nearest brick wall. “I don’t fucking care. Just do it.”

Seka Derringer pressed her lips together, the only other sign of her disagreement with his decision. The fisted hand on her hip was the first tell. “I told you, you should have sent one of my guys in. Hell, one of yours.”

“And I told you, I don’t delegate personal favors.” He shoved himself away from the table and grabbed his mug for another swig of beer, only to frown when he discovered it’d been replaced by a mug of coffee. “Where’s my porter?”

“Where’s your watch? It’s ten o’clock in the morning!”

Cade considered dumping the lukewarm coffee on her head, but there existed the strong probability she’d just throat punch him with the mug. “Whatever.” He chugged the rest of it and made a mental note to stop by the nearest pub for a shot of whiskey to wash it down. “I have errands to run. Shit to do.” Hearts to shatter.

That coffee wasn’t sitting well in his stomach.

“Does any of this happen to involve a certain Latina goddess?” Seka didn’t wait for his response because she already knew the answer. “I told you once and I’m going to keep saying it until you listen to me: You. Are. Making. A. HUGE. Mistake.”

“It won’t be that bad!” Cade threw his hands up in the air, mindful not to chuck the mug through the front window of the restaurant. Yet. “What makes her different from any of the others?”

“For starters?” Seka gave him a quick once-over and smirked. “No one else ever got you riled like this.”

“You do a perfectly fine job crawling under my skin.”

“That’s just it, though. That’s my job. I’m the very loud and irritating voice that keeps you headed in the direction that gets us what we want.”

Cade glanced around and waited for the underlings to clear more boxes out of the room before he lowered his voice and dipped his head to her. “What happens when I don’t know what I want?”

Read more

• They managed to successfully break into the top secret archives beneath the lake

• So did someone—or rather, something—else

“Elena.”

The cool night air filled her lungs and made tears of relief spring to her eyes. They were out. They made it out.

No thanks to whatever, whoever, the hell that was.

“Here.” She shrugged off her sweater and wrapped it around the astrolabe before thrusting it at the man trying to keep up with her furious pace away from him. “Take it. I did my job. I’m done.”

“Elena.”

She spun around to yell at him, scream at him, maybe even kick him in the shins.

But she didn’t.

She couldn’t.

In the darkness of the quiet lake shore, where they’d managed to slip out of the facility undetected and dodge the security lights of both museums, it was easier to see who Cade really was.

No.

What he really was.

Read more

• He gave her a glimpse into his old life—and where he actually comes from (hint: it’s not Chicago)

• He also gave a glimpse into the reality that he might, maybe, possibly have something resembling a heart. Maybe.

• Their museum heist shifted from “grab it and run” to something a bit more complicated—and buried beneath the lake

Son of a bitch.

He actually did it.

That son of a bitch actually did it.

“I’ll have you know, my mother was a lovely woman.” Cade wrinkled his nose at her but kept his hand firmly on her back to push her further into the dark corridor. “So you can stop muttering such horrible things about her.”

“Sorry.” Elena quickly shook her head. “No, I mean, I was talking about you.” Maybe. She didn’t remember saying anything out loud. To be fair, though, the man had her in a state of semi-shock and awe. Her cognition was a little fried at the moment.

It started with their “casual stroll” out into the night air and down the observatory walkway that connected to the natural history museum’s tiered gardens. Cade followed her lead up to a point, letting her steer their direction but insisting on holding her close to his side. They laughed over meaningless quips and smiled, waved, nodded, et cetera to passersby and outdoor security guards alike.

They were a picture of the perfect downtown couple.

Until Elena spotted the “employees only” signs over a door tucked behind some bushes but definitely leading to the underbelly of the history museum. That was when Cade told her to stay quiet, hold on to him tight, and trust him enough to keep her eyes closed.

She did.

They kept walking.

And they walked right past a group of guards, through the door, and into the first sectional hallway of the museum storage facility.

No one said a word. No alarms went off.

It was like they didn’t even exist.

That’s around the time Elena started muttering to herself. Cade didn’t break his stride, or hers, a mask of determination etched on his face—at least until he scolded her for insulting his mother.

“I just don’t get it,” Elena whispered. She glanced around his arm to see if anyone had spotted them or followed them in. “That guy was, like, three feet away. I could smell his cologne.”

“Dogs with head colds could smell that. Don’t worry about it.”

She moved to pull away from him, unsure of whether it was a good idea to keep walking so attached to this weirdo. Sure, he was sexy and funny and oozed charm when he allowed himself to relax out of “Mob Boss Mode”, but there was just something about him. Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on that had some alarm bells tinkling in the back of her mind.

Okay, so they were small alarm bells. Not foghorns, thank goodness.

More the kind that whispered the most ridiculous and insane ideas she shooed out of her brain the second they formed.

“Best stick with me,” he muttered when he felt her pull away. “It’ll be easier to make an escape if we need to.”

“How?”

“Just trust me. Yeah?”

Elena gave him the most skeptical Look she could muster. “Trust. You.”

He pressed his free hand over his chest and feigned a gasp of hurt. “Ouch. You’re making it sound like I’ve done anything at all to break your trust.”

“Oh, you haven’t. It’s just, hmm, let’s see.” She held up a hand to count the points with her fingers. “Organized crime boss, right? Full mafia. Not just a loan shark.”

The firm line of his mouth answered that question.

“Right. Who had God-knows-what done to some guy—”

“A thief.”

“Okay, but you couldn’t call the cops because otherwise you would have. Which means you’re definitely a criminal of some sort. See Item One. Next, there’s the fact that you’re totally okay with stealing an artifact from a museum, breaking into a highly secured facility—”

Cade scoffed as he looked around. “Not that secure.”

“Semantics. It just goes to show you’ve done this before and who knows how many times? Not to mention some of the weird shit you’ve been saying and telling me about that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever unless you’re some crazy person and oh my god, I’m on a museum heist with a crazy person.”

“Need to sit down? Process that for a moment?”

She shot him a glare. “No. What I need is a tranquilizer gun.”

“Oh, calm down.” He nodded at the door they were quickly approaching. “We’re here.”

Before she could shove the metal door open, he tucked her tighter to him and whispered the order for her to close her eyes again. When she didn’t obey right away, he gave her a little shake.

“Hey. I’m serious. Some of my ‘weird shit’ you keep panicking about is more than you can handle.”

Elena’s glare only deepened. “You know what? Fuck you! I can handle—”

He pulled her through the door.

Not like a normal person. Not the way that regular people use door handles or push on handlebars and lean their body weight against the wood or metal slab to enter the next section of the building.

Nope.

Cade pulled her through the door.

The very locked, very secure, very much not open door.

“You’re right,” he said with a proud smirk at her stunned silence. “I have done this before. Many times. It’s a specialty of mine.” He gestured to the open space of the huge bunker they now stood inside. “Not here, though. This is a first for me. You?”

She shook her head. Tottled forward. This time he let her, with a quick pat on her shoulder and a not-so-stifled chuckle as he left her there to go look for the compass.

This was a lot for her to digest. Visually, internally, situationally…the whole…everything. Around her sat potentially millions of artifacts spanning cultures and languages and entire civilizations of hundreds, maybe even thousands of years across the globe. Things the general public had not seen yet or didn’t know existed. Things she was forbidden to see or touch or share oxygen with because she just didn’t have that kind of clearance. No one did.

And standing in the middle of it all, rifling through provenance records and flipping over item tags, was a man who shouldn’t be able to do half the impossible things he’d done right before her very eyes.

“Who are you?”

Cade glanced up from a pottery tag to blink at her. “Me?”

Elena rolled her eyes, threw her hands in the air, and sighed. “No. The other guy I came here with. Yes, you!”

“First of all.”

A mixture of danger and excitement swirled low in her belly with every long stride he took toward her. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes glowed in the low light with a heat she didn’t want to believe was for her. Because it couldn’t be.

“I’m not loving this idea of you coming here, or going anywhere, with some ‘other guy’.” Cade filled her space once more, too close and too overwhelming and too…intoxicating. His voice dropped low, sending shivers through her spine and straight to the ache deep inside her. “Don’t get me wrong, ælfscíene, I have no illusions of exclusivity between us.” He lifted his hand to toy with the ends of her curls that tumbled over her shoulder. “But I think you should know just how much I find myself hating that thought.”

She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. “What thought?”

“You.” His face dipped lower. Closer. “With some other guy. Another man. Not me.”

Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. Thick. Dry. Needing him. “Why?” She breathed.

“Fuck if I know.”

His lips came so dangerously close to hers. Another inch, another sigh, and they’d be tasting each other exactly the way something inside her begged and pleaded for her to enjoy.

“Second of all…” Cade gazed at her mouth as if he were deciding on whether to go for it or hold back. The fact that he seemed to be debating it made her pulse race. “You’re asking all the wrong questions.”

“What?”

“Exactly.”

Just like before, he quickly stepped away and left her to stew in the heat he created but refused to tamper. “We need to find this thing,” he called over his shoulder. “Any idea where it could be?”

She’d be lucky if she could string two words together.

“Ah! Never mind!” Cade grinned and pointed at a sign. “Maritime! That sounds right.” He waved her over. “Come on. Let’s go. We don’t have all night.”

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• Tensions—and heat—began to rise between the artist and the soon-to-be art thief

• Ticket prices at the museum were insane! But so was the way he held her close, stole a kiss, and made her forget it’s “just pretend”

It shouldn’t have taken her longer than ten minutes to circulate through the east wing. There was only what, three short halls and a veranda overlooking some star charts?

Yet between a scout troop, three young families, and a marvelous selection of medieval art, Elena ended up taking more than twenty minutes to get through the section. Without spotting a single astrolabe or anything remotely resembling a compass, of course.

She didn’t exactly beat feet through the museum to rejoin her frustrating companion, but it was a fair speed-walk that wound her through the main foyer, down a hall she didn’t recognize from earlier, and finally the west wing.

Of course it was the “cooler” side of the observatory.

Cade just had to have everything go his way, even when she was the one calling the shots.

This section of the museum was plastered in neon backlit posters of nebulas, multicolored planetary rings, and galaxies that spun in slow, glittery spirals depending on the angle the viewer looked at them. Displays portraying Chicago’s “true sky” and future projects to minimize light pollution filled the main area with interactive exhibits and open invitations to support each innovative measure. Central to this space was “the old planet dome thingie”, a huge metal sphere with holes meticulously punched in patterns meant to replicate the constellations.

Next to the planetarium—the actual term—was the entrance to another exhibit: some governor family-sponsored, full-bodied view into the continuously expanding universe.

This is where she found him, standing at the entrance as if he wanted to go inside but feared whatever lay within. She almost didn’t approach him, not wanting to interrupt whatever it was running through his mind that made him seem so…so…lost.

Something tugged at her heartstrings. It didn’t feel right to just walk away. Not with the way his face softened and the artificial starlight glistened in his silvery eyes as if he were truly gazing out over the galaxies with heartfelt wonder.

“Nothing over there,” she casually remarked when she finally approached. “Find anything here?”

Cade blinked. Swallowed. Not once did he look away from that long, dark hall. “Yeah.”

He didn’t elaborate.

Elena rocked on her heels. Ooookkaaayyyy… “So, yeah. What do you want to do now?”

When he finally turned his head to look at her, she felt her breath catch.

Were those…tears?

Cade held his hand out to her but didn’t force her to take it.

He didn’t need to.

Something just felt…right…when she slipped her hand into his. Even better when he laced their fingers together and held her like he didn’t want to let her go.

“I want to show you something.”

Read more

• A deal was struck. A date was set.

• A “date” was also requested…

The man kept his pensive gaze transfixed on everything passing by outside the window, not once bothering to glance in her direction. Which normally would be fine if he were a total stranger who just happened to sit in the train seat facing her.

Not someone who was paying her thirty thousand dollars to go on a date.

“Like what you see?” He asked without turning his head.

Actually, yes. A little too much for Elena’s comfort. Not that she ever had anything against tattoos, or neck tattoos, but usually those were dramatic roses and statement pieces wrapped in thorns and rosary beads on guys who thought way too much of themselves. The tattoos on this guy, though?

She had no clue what they were. All she knew was they looked old, some of them followed what looked like a scar, and they made him look hot.

Insanely hot.

“I’m trying to figure you out.”

That got him to finally look at her. His luscious mouth twitched upwards. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Elena hugged her sweater around her waist, regretting leaving her bag back in her tiny apartment. Since the museums all had strict policies on bags, however, she felt it best to stick her cards in her pocket and pray her digital wallet worked. “You’re…interesting.”

“Oh?” That twitch turned into a smirk. Which turned into a silent invitation for her to keep going.

“Well, yeah. For starters, you’re this—” she stopped herself before she publicly announced you’re a mobster to the whole freaking train. “Um, guy. Who probably owns a car. And yet you wanted to take the train.”

“Disappointed I didn’t pick you up in my Maserati?”

“No.” She folded her arms and stared at his reflection in the window so it would look like she preferred watching the cityscape. “I’m more of a Ferrari kind of girl.”

He pretended to be insulted by her choice in luxury vehicles, but she caught the wink he gave her. “I promise I’ll do better next time.”

Next time. Those words made something in her stomach flutter that she instantly stamped down with a heavy dose of reality. There would be no “next time” after this.

“If you’re wondering why I prefer public transit over the convenience of custom leather seats and a sunroof, well…” He leaned back with a shrug. “There’s nothing convenient about parking.”

It was irritating how easily he made her giggle. Elena Martin was not that kind of girl to simper and giggle over gorgeous men like…like… “By the way.” Now she looked directly at him, wondering to herself how the hell he got her to go this far without filling in a few important blanks. “I just realized. I gave you my name, but you never gave me yours.”

“And I never will, ælfscíene. But you can call me Cade.”

Elena opened her mouth to point out the contradiction he just threw at her, but she didn’t quite have the right words for it. How could someone seem crazy and sane at the exact same time? So she shook her head and focused on the other puzzle at hand. “What does that even mean? ‘Elf sheen’?”

Cade slowly shook his head. “Nope. You’re asking for too many secrets.”

“Not my fault you have too many to keep.”

He began to retort with something witty wrapped in a smirk, but they were interrupted by the intercom announcing the next stop as theirs. So instead of responding, Cade motioned for her to slide out of the seat and stood behind her.

Did he—

Did he just touch her ass?!

Read more

• There’s someone arguably shadier than the mob boss trying to make a deal—and he’s got nothing to lose

• A college student realizes that whether it’s to a loan shark or the federal government, she’s going to owe someone a ton of money, so…

Thank the gods he hadn’t chosen that moment to take another sip of absinthe.

He damn near sp…

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• An impossible invoice threatened a struggling art student’s housing

• Borscht became the recommended entrée while a small mob gathered to “juice a client” for long-overdue debts

• A silver-eyed loan shark emerged as an arguably more attractive way to fund college tuition

“I’ve been told that before.” Ewan Markis chuckled under his …

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Welcome to The White City.

This episode begins the adventure, intrigue, and romance of the series—make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next installment.

The buzz in her hand did not promise good things.

When had it ever?

Elena glanced down at her phone and sighed. Just as expected, the notification showed the institute’s logo, her full name, and the…

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Alongside starlit riverwalks and amid the mists that roll off Lake Michigan…

There is another Chicago.

One built on magic, ruled by ancient bargains, and controlled by a supernatural underworld that most humans never see—and when they do, it’s easily written off as “organized crime” activity.

This is where architecture and alchemy combine.

Where floating lights aren’t just reflections on the water.

This is where the Sidhe-Who-Stayed make their home and pay their dues to the exiled Prince of Night, a mysterious and morally ambiguous man responsible for building, and ruling, every lamp-lit street and shadowed alley.

This is The White City.

“What’s it about?”

The White City is an ongoing urban fantasy romance set in an “alternate” Chicago, where magic and modern life coexist in uneasy balance—and where power is enforced through blood oaths, ancient debts, tenuous loyalties, and undeniable desire. It’s a city built and ruled by the fae folk, from mischievous brownies serving espresso in corner cafés to the powerful Tuatha Dé Danann who comprise both the upper echelons of society and its dark underbelly.

You can expect:

• Hidden magic woven into a modern city

• A supernatural underworld that quietly—and often recklessly—runs Chicago

• Dangerous bargains, questionable choices, and linguistic technicalities

• Romance driven by tension, adventure, and irritating-but-important challenges to perspective

This is a story about what people will trade to survive…

…and what it truly costs when it’s time to pay up.

“Where should I start?”

This series will unfold in two parts, beginning in January 2026:

• Lords & Thieves — a prequel novella that sets the stage, introducing the fae underworld and the forces shaping Chicago (and some of the adventure in the Song of the Sidhe series) behind the scenes

• Sinners & Starlight — Book One/Season One of the series

You can jump straight into Sinners & Starlight, but reading the prequel first adds context, history, and a deeper understanding of the world Elena Martín steps into.

A Note For Fans of Ithandryll and the Song of the Sidhe Series:

This is a companion series that shares the same universe!

While not “required reading” in order to enjoy the books in Song of the Sidhe, it is highly recommended reading for anyone who loves additional lore and deeper world-building. This new series will explore more background stories from the Night Realm, explain a few minor riddles that kicked off Ithandryll (like that compass), and introduce a pretty important character coming up in Blood of Balor.

How To Read the Series

There’s no wrong way to experience The White City:

• Read along as chapters publish

• Binge the story later at your own pace

• Subscribe to receive updates when new chapters go live

This Section will continue to grow as the story unfolds!

Whether you’re here for the magic, the romance, or the dangerous bargains in-between…

Welcome to the White City.