The Dark Prince (The Dark Light Series)(31)

***

“Do you think you’ll be able to help her?” I ask Dorian as we make our way to my childhood home.

“I don’t know. I don’t even know what type of magic it is.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know if it’s Light or Dark. Or something else entirely.”

“Well obviously it’s Dark, Dorian! You think the Light is capable of this carnage? Besides, they want nothing to do with me until I ascend. They vowed to stay hidden until I’m 21.”

Dorian shrugs before turning onto the street that houses my parents’ home. He parks his Mercedes on the curb, and cuts the ignition. Neither one of us are ready to get out.

“I think you’re being too hard on Aurora. I know that sounds funny coming from me, but she didn’t mean for this to happen.” There. That’s my good deed for the day.

Dorian chuckles before removing his shades and looking into my eyes. “Aurora can’t be trusted, Gabriella.”

“But you trust her, right?”

“That’s because I know her. I know what she is.”

“Well, enlighten me,” I say folding my arms in front of my chest. The more I know about Aurora, the better.



Dorian sighs before angling his body towards mine. “Ok, Aurora is an Órexis.”

Okay. Now what the hell does that mean? Though the name does sound familiar…

“The meaning of that is desire” he continues. “Now the Órexes are known for their ability to manipulate the more carnal emotions. They thrive off sexual depravity. It’s what sustains them.”

“Oh,” is all I can say in response. There really is a lot to learn about the Dark. Not to mention, the Light, whom I know virtually nothing about.

“When I met Aurora, we were both very young and untamed. I was stubborn and eager to become a man. Aurora wanted to aide my efforts. She was incredibly opportunistic, you could say. We did a lot of bad things together, and I’ll admit we had a lot of fun. But Aurora was insatiable, just as she is today. She has no self-control. She is completely ruled by her desires.”

I get it now; Aurora really is a sex kitten. No wonder Jared is putty in her hands. She has clouded his judgment with sex, and because he is so filled with lust for her, it feeds her. Explains why Dorian was so pissed at her. She has been so wrapped up in quenching her sexual thirst instead of doing the job she was instructed to do. And now Jared’s mom is in the hospital. So much for thinking I understood her. I don’t even know if she has the ability to truly love Dorian.

“Did you ever love her?”

Dorian shakes his head. “No. I lusted for her, and maybe there was a time when I thought I did love her. I did care for her deeply. But she always took things too far. I was rebellious but I wasn’t stupid. And there are some lines that you just don’t cross.” Dorian unfolds my arms and takes my hands in his. He kisses each knuckle gently and I instantly begin to soften.

“Last night, seeing you with her, like that…Was that how it was? Between you two?” I mentally scold myself for asking, but I want to know, no matter how much it hurts me.

“You don’t want to know that, Gabriella.” He places more kisses on my hands, trying to distract me from going into this forbidden territory.

“Yes, I do. I just need to know. Did she manipulate you to act like that or was that real desire for her? Because it looked to me like you wanted her. I know for a fact you did.”

Dorian swallows then sighs, letting go of my hands. He leans back in his seat and looks up at the sky as if he’s searching for the answer in the clouds. “If you must know, that was just a fraction of the intensity that Aurora and I once shared. Breathing her in was arousing for me because I was taking in her desire. I didn’t want to feel that way, but I couldn’t help it.”

He looks back at me, searching my face for any sign of understanding. “But being with you- loving you- is unlike anything I have ever experienced. It’s so much more than sex, Gabriella. It’s as if I’ve been numb these past 250 years. And now, with you, I feel everything.”

I try to muster an encouraging smile though I am a bit disturbed at the fact that Aurora’s desires now live inside Dorian. But he’s here, alive and breathing, and though the idea sickens me that they share such a salacious past, I owe her for that. However, the only person Dorian will breathe is me from now on.

“Come on, my parents are expecting us,” I say opening the car door. “Ready for this?”

Dorian is already out of the car, giving me one of his famous sexy smirks. How the hell does he do that? “If it means getting you all to myself, than I’m ready for anything.”