Chapter 132: Chapter 132 Playing the Villain

Elara’s POV

What made it worse was how Finnian always seemed so unaffected by everything. Back at the sanatorium, I remembered the way a simple kiss used to turn his cheeks bright red. But now? What the hell had gotten into him?

It was like someone had flipped a hidden switch.

I caught his wrist, stopping his hand from sliding any further up my shirt, and finally managed to speak. "Finnian..."

"Yeah?"

God help me. That single syllable nearly ripped my soul straight out of my body. How could he sound so painfully oblivious and insanely seductive all at once?

"I always assumed you were one of the good ones," I murmured.

A dark, low chuckle rumbled in his chest. "I suppose I’ll have to prove you wrong, Elara."

He took my earlobe between his teeth, biting down gently. I swore I was dying on the spot—my toes curled tight, a heavy shiver shooting straight down my neck.

"Actually, I am a good guy," he whispered. "It just depends on who I’m with, and when. Right now? Maybe I’m playing the villain."

Alright. I surrendered.

The pristine, untouchable fox had completely morphed into a full-on daddy.

At least Silas tried to keep up appearances. Finnian wasn’t even bothering with a facade anymore. Those hazy eyes, that fierce possessiveness, the sheer, aggressive hunger written across his face—it was a stark contrast to his everyday demeanor. I let out a heavy internal sigh.

Lord. Will my legs even function tomorrow?

He pressed a kiss to my finger, tracing a slow, agonizing path upward until his hot breath ghosted over my collarbone. Finnian had become a master of seduction. His mouth wandered, his hands roamed freely, and yes... even that fluffy tail refused to behave.

That tail, especially. At the sanatorium, he meticulously massaged grooming cream into it every single day to keep the fur impossibly sleek. Naturally, there was no better time to put that softness to use than right this second.

"Elara, say my name. Please?" he begged softly.

Outside, the compact spacecraft settled quietly beside a dark mountain stream. Inside, things were boiling over.

When the earliest sliver of dawn bled into the cabin, I finally fluttered my eyes open. Still half-asleep, I let my hand wander until my fingers brushed against something solid. I gave the muscle an appreciative squeeze.

Not bad at all.

I tilted my head back and found Finnian staring down at me, looking thoroughly satiated.

"Morning, my Elara."

"Morning, tricky fox," I replied. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

I rolled over, sliding my hand off his chest, but then I froze. Panic spiked through my groggy brain. My eyes flew wide as I spun back around. "Did you..."

"I wore one," he assured me.

I was still young. We were just getting started—far too early to even consider cubs. That was a milestone that required my explicit consent first.

Thankfully, we had all been exceptionally responsible on that front.

*Smack.* The sound echoed loudly through the cabin as my palm connected with his shoulder, leaving a stark red imprint behind.

"Why are you hitting me?" Finnian thrust out his lower lip, sinking his head into the pillow. "Wasn’t I good?"

"Take a wild guess," I fired back.

He actually pretended to mull it over. "I’m guessing... because you’re feeling shy?"

"Stop talking. Zip it." I reached up, pinching his cheeks hard.

Trapped, Finnian deployed his favorite diversion tactic, sliding his soft tail right into my grip.

"You dare bring that thing out again?" I demanded.

He batted his eyelashes with weaponized innocence. "But you seemed to enjoy it so much last night..."

"I said shut up..." I lunged forward, locking my arms tightly around his head to muffle him.

He instantly went rigid. So did I. I glanced down, mortification flooding my veins. I wished the floor would open up and swallow me whole. I didn’t have a single stitch of clothing on.

Go figure. Only a mature guy like Alistair would have the foresight to clean up and spare me the naked awkwardness of the morning after. But the rabbit and the fox?

Night and day.

Silas treated clothes like an obstacle course to get through, while Finnian clearly believed bare was better.

Muffled against my bare chest, Finnian mumbled, "If this is my punishment, I hope Elara punishes me exactly like this every single day."

"In your wildest dreams," I scoffed.

This manipulative fox. Why couldn’t he ever just act normal?

I was just a young woman, and here I was, barely awake, experiencing what felt terrifyingly close to nursing a grown man.

Finnian didn’t give a damn. He snagged the blanket, yanking it over us, and leaned up to steal another kiss. "I’m right, aren’t I? You’re fuming. You’re definitely trying to discipline me."

"Wrong."

"Liar. I deserve to be punished..."

Fine, spout whatever nonsense you want, but did he have to drag out that last word in that raspy tone?

"Playing cute isn’t going to save you," I warned him.

"How about this?" he murmured.

I lost the ability to speak.

Yep, I’m officially dead.

"Baby..." he coaxed.

"Shut up," I snapped weakly.

"Why do I have to be quiet? Why does Silas get to call you that, but I can’t? Baby, you aren’t playing favorites, are you? Baby? Baby, is that off-limits?"

I stared at him, utterly wordless.

Jesus, he was terrifyingly good at playing the victim.

How had I missed this side of him?

Finnian was absolutely going to be the death of me.

I made a firm mental note.

Push his turn way down the rotation. At the bare minimum, never schedule him back-to-back with Silas. Those two combined were going to drain the literal life out of me.

——

Over at Novareach Floating Island, Alistair, Barrett, Kaelen, Julian, and the others had headed out to the palace early that morning.

Liam had personally come to fetch them. Apparently, a massive backlog of military affairs had piled up during their stint at the sanatorium. Rosalind had called an urgent meeting to iron out the details so they could officially reclaim their posts.