“I’m going to check on Oliver.” Hekla gave me a sad smile. “Want to come along, Kaippa?”
Though Kaippa had saved both Hekla’s life and Oliver’s, I still didn’t think it was a great idea to have him around.
“Calm down, Coren.” Kaippa sauntered past. “I’m on my best behavior.”
Ignoring him, I went to Lucus, took my fated mate’s warm hand, then led him to his bedroom, deep within the castle where he might find some quiet for mourning. We didn’t have long, the unicorn had said as much, but Lucus could take a few hours surely.
Hopefully.
15 Hekla
Hekla walked beside Kaippa down the firelit corridor toward the room where they’d settled Oliver. “I can’t believe they’re all gone," she said. “It’s just us four now.”
“And young Oliver,” Kaippa said.
Tears seared Hekla’s eyes as she touched the heavy wood grain of the door to Oliver’s room. She couldn’t go in like this, weeping. She had to be strong for the boy.
Kaippa rubbed her back. “I don’t think it’ll hurt Oliver to see you mourn his father. He will mourn too. It’s a natural thing, Hekla.”
Hekla pushed inside, partly to get away from Kaippa’s touch. Too much of her wanted to lean into him like she had when she’d turned into a fox and nearly been run down by a truck. But the vampire couldn’t be trusted. He was a killer, and he’d hurt Titus.
Oliver stirred on the bed as Hekla sat beside him.
“We’re back now. Do you want to see your father’s grave or keep resting? Whatever you want to do is fine.”
Oliver pushed further into his pillow, his muffled cries dragging nails over Hekla’s heart.
Kaippa turned the other side of the bed down. “Rest here with him. I’ll stand outside to keep watch.”
He looked sincere, but he was a vampire.
“You can trust me to do this, Hekla.”
“Can I?”
“I will show you.” Kaippa left the room, shutting the door. A bump on the oak said he’d leaned against the entrance.
He really was going to watch over them in case the demon wyvern returned. Hekla’s body felt like it was coated in syrup, sticky and heavy. She wanted to yell at Kaippa and order him to shove off, but her eyes wouldn’t stay open. Sighing, she gave in, tucked herself into bed beside little Oliver, and was asleep with Kaippa’s concerned eyes in her thoughts before she’d taken three breaths.
16 Coren
In Lucus’s bedroom, it was summer again, the air thick with the scent of blooming flowers, tree pollen, and warmed black earth. Under the massive oak that spread its luminous, green leaves, Lucus sat on the side of his bed. His modern clothing was such a contrast to his looks and this amazing room. The ruby-hued velvet duvet he crushed with his fisted hands was dusted with light from the candelabra and the window set high in the wall.
He hadn’t said a word since laying his brothers to rest. We were both still covered in dirt, our knuckles caked in dried blood, and our clothes torn and stinking from the demon’s breath.
This all sucked so damn hard.
I got on my knees in front of Lucus and slid his boots and socks off.
“Coren.” My name sounded like a plea.
“You need to get cleaned up. This is basic maintenance, and I don’t mind it. Not today.”
He didn’t fight me as I pulled his tee shirt off. He’d already shucked his jacket, and his scent increased, loosening my muscles. Grime stained the corded muscles in his neck and the curves and tip of his fae ears. He had dirt in his hair and along one side of his horns.
In his bathroom, I stripped down to my bra and undies and used a towel to clean the blood off my arm and face. That’s when I realized Lucus had healed me at some point, maybe when he’d held my hand on our way to the burial. I wasn’t sure.
In the sink, I upended a wide vase of ferns that had been on the window ledge. I filled the container with warm water and found a thick washcloth on a set of shelves in the corner. I returned to Lucus, vase and cloth in hand.
Carefully, like he might disappear if I moved too quickly, I dragged the damp washcloth over Lucus’s beautiful, sharp cheekbones and the column of his throat. I didn’t react when tears leaked from his eyes in silence. I just wiped them away, then began washing his hands—palms, fingers, thumbs.
“Stand.” I took his hands and helped him to obey even though he was a million times stronger than me. Because right now, he wasn’t.
I undid his jeans, tugged them off as he sat again, then eased him back to lie on the bed. He spread his wing against the other side of the mattress and nodded, not making eye contact but clearly inviting me to lie down beside him.
We slept until the window showed full dark, his breath stirring my hair and my hand on his stomach. At some point during the night, Lucus began to kiss my fingers, one by one.
“Thank you, my mate.” His words drifted through my chaotic dreams until I blinked myself awake. “Thank you. Thank you.”
I rolled to my side and kissed the corner of his lips. He tasted salty, like tears. I thought he’d go back to sleep, but he turned and pressed his mouth on mine. With quick movements only a fae could accomplish, he was on top of me, cradling my face with his hands, his wings spread above us like a canopy. He placed soft kisses on my nose, my chin, my temples, forehead. Then he brushed my throat with his lips.
“I need you, Coren.” The longing in his voice told me what he wanted. For us to be connected in every way two creatures can. Emotionally. Physically. Spiritually.
He undid my bra,
