“My dear child…” Gliding towards me, the Shifter King rested a heavy hand on my shoulder. His nails broke through clothes and into skin - I knew it was going to leave a nasty bruise. “If you break the oath, the spell, then you die. Simple. You are dismissed until we call upon you for your first task.”
His words echoed in my ears. Reverberated through my body.
Simple.
Then why did it feel as if I was walking to my execution?
DEVLIN WAS STILL ASLEEP when I snuck back into the room. I hadn’t made him aware of my meeting with the Kings, knowing for certain that he would demand to go with me. Whatever secrecy our relationship had would no doubt shatter the second he entered that throne room.
He looked peaceful as he slept. Serene. His abnormally long lashes fluttered against his olive-toned skin, and his disheveled curls fanned out on the pillow. Tiptoeing so I wouldn’t disturb him, I perched on the edge of the bed.
How did I feel about Devlin Genie?
There was no easy way for me to answer that question.
One part of me remembered our time together, the love we had shared, the way he had held me with reverence and tenderness as if I was the only girl in the world. The other half of me balked at the idea of re-entering a relationship with the man who had broken my heart. Trust had to be earned, and once you broke it, it was impossible to fix completely. It was like trying to capture raindrops in the palm of your hand: impossible.
Add on the fact that he was my fated mate, one of the seven men designed specifically for me, only made me more cautious. We had spent years together, and he had never bothered to tell me.
I had even fallen in love with another man, and he had still remained silent.
At the same time, I had lied to him too. My name, when we had first met, had been Susan, and I had posed as a helpless damsel in distress. I had never nor will I ever be that woman. Time may have cracked away at my innocence, but I had always been hard. Glacial. Not even cannons could tear down these walls I had impeccably crafted, brick by brick.
He stirred, muttering something beneath his breath. Glutton for punishment, I leaned closer, pressing my ear against his parted lips.
“Z…” he whispered sleepily. Dreamily.
My heart thudded in my chest before dropping through the floorboards. A fire built in my stomach, setting me ablaze.
Why did the thought of him dreaming of me fill me with both dread and excitement?
Unable to answer that, I settled on stroking his hair.
Being with Devlin...it had once felt like coming home after trekking through an atrocious snowstorm. The wind howling, the snow assaulting my face, the water seeping through the legs of my pants. Once I entered the house, warmth emanated from the lit fire and the smell of baked cookies wafted from the oven, the smell pervasive. It was the feeling of wrapping your favorite blanket around your shoulders to curb the frigid air. Home. He had felt like home.
Now? That home had cracks that brought in the snow, and the fire had long since turned to embers.
“Z?” a tired voice whispered
It took me a moment to realize that Devlin wasn’t just sleepily mumbling my name. He opened one eye lazily, a content smile fluttering on his face. Before I could say something - perhaps explain why I was sitting there staring at him like a stalker - he reached a hand out and pulled me towards him. My body bounced against his hard, muscular one, and I tensed instinctively.
I didn’t...cuddle.
But I also couldn’t deny that being in his arms felt right.
“When did you get up?” he whispered, nuzzling my hair with his nose. I heard him inhale deeply, breathing in my scent. I prayed that I didn’t stink of...well...blood. Or whatever else assassins would stink of.
“Um...just a little bit ago?”
Was this the new pillow talk?
“Liar,” Devlin said suddenly, catching me off guard. When I merely tilted my head up to stare at him, blinking rapidly, he grinned down at me. “You have a tell, my love. You stiffen.”
“I stiffen?” I asked in disbelief. I catalogued my body, somewhat pissed when I noticed that my limbs were abnormally tight. “That’s probably because you pulled me on top of you,” I deflected.
He snorted, hand coming down to brush at my thighs. Now, my body stiffened for an entirely different reason. Damn feminine hormones. And damn him for having a magic hand. I had lived on only my hand for a year, thank you very much, and the last thing I needed-
I gasped as his fingers fluttered against the seams of my pants, directly over my core.
“Where were you?” he repeated. “Were you with one of the others?”
He didn’t sound jealous talking about my six other mates, his brothers in every way but blood, though I imagined it couldn’t have been easy for him. He had me all to himself once upon a time, and now…
I knew I would go quite stabby if he had six other lovers.
Nope. Not going there.
Bitches would be stabbed.
Painfully.
In the boob.
“What are you thinking about now?” he asked. He pressed his lips to the crown of my head before moving lower, across my cheekbone, and finally resting on my jaw. His scruff tickled my sensitive skin.
“Boobs,” I answered honestly. At least that was one thing I could answer. He chuckled, the sound making my body tingle. Unlike his father’s, it was a genuine, amused laugh.
“Should I be jealous?” he asked teasingly. Those damn lips of his rested on my earlobe, nibbling softly. The barest graze of teeth.
“As long as you don’t think about boobs, we shouldn’t have a problem,” I said breathlessly. I blamed it on the jog I had never taken. Yup. That five mile non-existent run through the woods.
“Is that so?”
Devlin’s hand snaked upwards before resting
