Shaking my head, I told him, “It’s okay, but thanks.”

“You must have done it before to someone.”

I nodded. “Yeah...but it’s weird.”

“Weird how?”

“Well...you know when you’re really thirsty, for any fluid, and you start swigging down a drink but you keep going even when you’re not really thirsty anymore just because it feels so good and soothing against your throat?”

“Yeah. Don’t tell me you get, like, an energy-lust?” He smiled at that.

“I’ve been known to take more than I need to. I could wipe you out, you’d be just as exhausted as I am now.”

“I won’t let you wipe me out.”

“You won’t stop me, you won’t want me to stop. It’s almost like when you’re drinking blood... It won’t make you horny, but it’ll make you feel a bit high.”

“Really? Go for it then. I’m way too intrigued to let this go. How do you do it?”

“Well, you don’t have much excess energy around you so the best and quickest way to do it would be for me to put my hands on your head, but that’ll probably make you dizzy.”

“That’s okay.”

I didn’t like the idea of repaying him by sending him off all wobbly. “You sure you want to do this?”

“Sam, just do it.”

“Hands.” I held out mine, palms facing upwards, and he took them. “Right. You don’t have to do anything, but it’ll work better if you don’t resist when you feel the pull.”

“I won’t,” he assured me in a whisper as he twined his fingers in mine and shuffled closer to me.

“When I say stop, you have to pull away or the connection won’t totally break.” I didn’t actually need to close my eyes, but I did. It was just too distracting to look at him when he was doing that obvious staring thing. It felt as though my entire body was a lung as it sucked in his energy as if it was vapour. Instantly Jared shuddered, but he didn’t resist.

Sam. It was a gasp of pleasant surprise; it felt good to him already.

Hungry for more of that force, my body drew in more and more. I felt Jared’s hands tighten on my fingers and then his forehead was suddenly pressed against mine. I opened my eyes to find that his own were closed. I could feel what he was feeling; that he was outside of reality, that he was at peace, that nothing else mattered but this moment. Well he was certainly enjoying himself.

It was as my body began to grow desperate for more of his energy that I knew I had to stop – it was like heading toward a cliff at high speed, knowing that if you stopped now you’d be okay but if you kept upping that speed... “Stop.”

I tried to pull my hands away but Jared held them even tighter. “No, don’t stop.”

“I have to.” But his hold was unyielding. “Jared, you have to let go.” But he didn’t, he wasn’t even having some sort of inner struggle about whether to release my hands or not. He was completely caught up in the feeling. I thought about butting him but in his state of bliss the pain wouldn’t even register.

Jared!?!

If he didn’t let go of my hands now I’d fall off that cliff.

An idea came to mind; something that was sure to snap him out of it. I kissed him. A firm, greedy kiss. His eyelids shot open and, sure enough, he kissed me back. His hands instantly went to my face and held it to his as if he was expecting me to pull away any second now. I should pull away. But that was easier thought about than done. That blast of heat that I’d felt last time circulated through me again.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying his tongue exploring the crevice of my mouth, or if I said that my hands were clutching the skin of his back of their own accord. Just like I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t wanted him since first meeting him, or that him being misogynistic had made me want him any less. That was why when he dragged me onto his lap, his lips still mashed with mine, I curled my legs around his waist instead of pulling away. He grinded me against his erection, groaning, as he intensified the kiss ten-fold; it was raw and primal and drugging. Then he was skating his hands over me, kneading my br**sts and clutching my arse, and then he was plucking my ni**les with his teeth.

Suddenly my head hit a hard surface and there was a strong smell of earth. Jared released my mouth and looked around us just as I did. Then he laughed.

“Why are we in the arena?” I asked, spooked.

“You must have teleported us here.”

“Say again?”

“When you took some of my energy you must have absorbed a little of my power.”

“But I didn’t try to teleport us. I certainly wasn’t thinking about the arena.” Thank God it was empty of people.

“It can be a little temperamental until you get used to it. The arena’s been on your mind the past couple of days, right? So here we are.”

Yes, here we were; bodies pressed together, my legs tangled around his waist, hearts hammering away.

“Um...” I had no idea what to say. Whatever Jared saw on my face made him release an aggravated sigh and move from above me. I, too, stood, and as we stared at each other wearing dubious expressions it made me think of last night after we had broke away from each other.

“I know you only kissed me because you couldn’t get through to me before. I know that. But you didn’t stop, Sam. You could have, because sure enough the kiss served its purpose. Not only did you not stop, but you got that carried away that you teleported us without trying to. So I’m thinking maybe you want me a lot more than what you’re letting on.”

I honestly didn’t know what he wanted from me. Yeah, a shag. But I didn’t get why a shag was all so important. “Jared, why are you pushing this? What is it you want to hear?”

“I just need to understand why you pull away from me.”

Oh – he’s not used to rejection. The idea of someone not wanting him was just incomprehensible to him. Blokes and their egos!

“I know you said that you find me having three consorts a bit weird...But, I mean, what is it that you’re saying exactly? Is it that you want me to get rid of them? That you want to be my only consort? That you want more from me than just sex? What?”

I held up my index finger. “Alright, first of all, I’ll never be anyone’s consort ever again in my life. I thought I made that clear. And I don’t want some fairytale relationship; I couldn’t give that much of myself anyway when I’ve only just got me back.”