Page 45 of Rogue Familiar

“I did wonder what in the dark arts Phel was thinking, letting you tear off after me. Especially when he promised—” Jadren broke off, too late, realizing how incriminating that particular confession would be.

But Seliah’s eyes sparkled cannily. “That he promised to keep me there? That my brother gave you permission to leave and desert me? I know everything, Jadren.”

“Figures Phel would cave and spill it all.”

She wasn’t in the least offended. “Nic took my side. And they both knew I’d couldn’t do anything but come after you, so Gabriel finally agreed it was better I go with his blessing and support.”

With a sigh, he extended a hand to her, and she took it with a soft smile. “I wish you hadn’t been compelled,” he said, wanting to tell her so much more than that.

“I wasn’t compelled by anything more than my own desires,” she replied without hesitation. “I am now exactly where I want to be. Wherever you want to go, I’ll go with you.”

“I’m not sure where that is.”

“Where were you going when you were diverted by a near-lethal fall from a cliff?”

“I didn’t fall, I was thrown,” he protested, laughing a little along with her. How he could be laughing at this juncture, he didn’t know, but it felt good. “I was going to House Hanneil,” he admitted. “I just didn’t expect the border patrol to do away with me as a landless, rogue wizard.”

“Didn’t you tell them who you were?”

“Explaining who I am is a bit difficult. I did tell them that Lady Hanneil would want to see me, because I’m just that important. Shockingly enough, they declined to believe me.”

Seliah snorted in appreciation. “Why Hanneil?”

He considered lying. But what was the point? “I thought they could assess my magic and get me an MP scorecard, so I could perhaps get a job in the Convocation. And I thought I could ask them about whether our bond could be severed.”

Seliah regarded him steadily. Too steadily, and with a flush of color rising on her dusky cheekbones. She was covering something up there. “Do you think they can sever the bond? I’ve been told it’s impossible.”

“I figured that since they—” The geas kicked in, stopping his tongue. Figures. He shook his head. “I figured if anyone knew, they would. Turns out getting an audience with Lady Hanneil isn’t so easy as riding up and asking for it.”

“It won’t be easier now, with us having killed their wizards—so far as they know.”

He patted her cheek with his free hand. “Aw, look at how well you’ve come to understand the Convocation. Does my heart proud.”

She rolled her eyes at him, then turned her face, holding his gaze, and pressed a kiss into his palm, her talented tongue flicking out in a most stimulating caress. Lightning arousal jagged through him and he forgot everything but wanting her again. More and more.

Sliding his hand behind her neck, he pulled her into a kiss, sinking into her avid, delicious mouth. She came eagerly, meeting him with equal desire, trailing a hand down his naked chest to clasp his hardening cock in a deft and arousing grip. “Let’s get back into bed,” she murmured against his lips, and his member leapt her in hand in full agreement.

“We should get on the road,” he countered, though without much conviction. At least his brain had kicked in. Somewhat. “At least figure out where we should go.”

“Not House Hanneil,” she said, stroking him so he groaned and fisted his hand in her hair.

“Definitely not,” he gasped. “But where?”

“I have an idea.” She bent and took him in her mouth, so he didn’t find out her plan for quite some time.

~14~

Nic purely simmered with fury, only some of it directed at herself. She wasn’t much of one to revisit past mistakes. Of course, other than the unavoidable error of failing to manifest as a wizard, Nic hadn’t been much of one to make mistakes in the first place. She worked hard, to the utmost of her ability, never giving only a mediocre effort. As best as she could, she’d always made sure that she did everything very well. If she didn’t hit the mark, then she recalibrated, practiced, and refined until she was satisfied with her performance.

After all, her beloved papa had expected nothing less of her, his pride and joy, his heir. He’d been an exacting taskmaster and she’d been the brilliant pupil that rose to even the highest expectations. Until she’d failed the final test.

But that wasn’t worth thinking about. She’d spent too much time dwelling on what she’d lost by being a familiar, unable to take over as Lady Elal and head the house of her birth as she and her papa had always believed she would. Her life had changed for the better as a direct result of that apparent failure. A more philosophical person than she might produce a pithy saying worthy of the wizard-philosopher Lord Redlin: Something something about what seems like a failure at the time leading to better things.

She’d found those better things: friendships she’d never expected, Gabriel’s love, the true partnership they enjoyed, the opportunity to rebuild House Phel and make it into something truly extraordinary. Had she become Lady Elal, she wouldn’t have any of these things. The path to heading House Elal had been very clear—basically becoming her father—and also tremendously circumscribed. With this life she’d fallen into, arguably as the result of a single, wildly impulsive and unwise decision, she’d given up all predictability, along with convention, all on an improbable dream. One she’d actually begun to believe in.

Now, she fumed, she’d already jeopardized the venture before they got it off the ground, because she hadn’t been paying enough attention. How many times had she warned Gabriel that the hammer was poised to fall? Countless. She’d known this was coming and yet she’d allowed herself to drift through the days on a haze of love and sex and spring flowers, actually talking about wedding planning like she was living in a romance novel instead of an epic tragedy.

How disgusted her papa would be. Or perhaps he felt smugly vindicated. Clearly she’d never been the right material to head a High House. Where is your spine, daughter? Her father’s voice echoed in her head. Perhaps that familiar’s brain has sapped away your will and intelligence. Pity.

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